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As a Divine Divinity fan, I'd appreciate everyone's opinion(s) on gamespot's review.Do you agree that Ego Draconis: 1)Has a weak story? 2)is Buggy? and 3)Has bad animations? I'm not being an ass, just worried about my favorite game confused!! Thank you all for your time...
The review is at http://www.gamespot.com/pc/rpg/divinity2egodraconis/review.html


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who cares what gamestop thinks. if you like it. you like it. that's it!!

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I think the review is pure garbage, the reviewer nitpicks on the game and all the time you feel that he is trying to compare the game to other rpg's like dragon age for example.

I actually wrote a piece on their general to give them a piece of my mind and what i thought about that crappy review.

No game is perfect. But when a reviewer see or wishes that he was playing a different game when he is reviewing a game then the game will surely get crappy review. I said that the should overhaul their review system and that the reviews should be based on the opinion of several persons and not just one person.

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I am not sure its a garbage review.

I can certainly see how the reviewer found issue with what he pointed out, and those things bother me as well.

I DO like the story however, and I like the art/scenery and all that.

However yes the animations are poorly, if you doubt, please start a new game and talk to the knight lady in the beginning before you go into Farghut or whatever. Watch as she twitches uncontrollably like Michael J. Fox with parkinson's disease. Some characters behave oddly like that, others don't.

But I think the review is sound, this IS a good game, however there are some technical and design issues.

(it's certainly worth paying for)

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buggy- yes
bad story- dunno yet, havent beaten the game
bad animations- hells no! I think the animations of the game are one of its strongest points, combat looks awesome!

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The story isn't "bland," it's quite well-written until you get to the ending. At that point, YMMV, and I think that depends entirely on how well-read you are. You'll think it's a great ending if you're unfamiliar with twist endings and their overuse, or just don't like happy endings, in which case you'll love this ending.

What "bugs" it has I think are limited to the control scheme and its ties to character animations, as it's eminently possible for a player character to be completely shut down by ranged fire as you're forced to watch the injury animation play out with no means of countering it, your control over the character being effectively removed for the duration of the animation (the problem, of course, is when you're hit in rapid succession, you can't recover fast enough to avoid getting hit again). Related to this is how after every single bit of dialogue, your character has his weapon sheathed, so dialogue ends, you immediately get hit with ranged/magic damage, you don't even have your weapon out, and you're screwed by a game that's Nintendo Hard for all the wrong reasons (and really, who wouldn't confront a Bad Guy and not have their weapon out, hmm?)

Also, related to animations, every single enemy has but one death animation. Kill a bunch of enemies at the same time, and watch them collapse to the ground in perfect synchronicity.

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The reviewer is over-thinking it. This is an RPG that's greater than the sum of its parts - another 4 hours flew off the clock tonight. I like this RPG because of the non-leveling, because NPCs don't re-spawn, and because it's bloody difficult. It's just a fun and engaging RPG.

Don't over-think it. Just play it. smile

Last edited by WabeWalker; 09/01/10 10:19 AM.
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To real gamers reviews are less important.
Reviews are a mild guideline for me, I hate people who run around thinking a games terrible just because a few reviewers dont like it, its called an opinion not the truth or law.
I couldn't care less about Gamespot and there reviews to be honest they went down hill ages ago.


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I agree with some of the things he stated. One thing mentioned is "unbalanced skirmishes." I think he just ran into battle expecting not to die when outnumbered and lacked strategy or had the wrong stats. Even on Medium difficulty I found the game easy until the end, so really I don't consider his opinions to be worth much.

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Kevin VanOrd - the guy who wrote the review is usually pretty good. He did an excellent review of Demon's Souls, so right there you know he doesn't need his hand held in games. But, IMO, he focused too much on the faults of Divinity II (every game has them) and I disagree with "bland story populated by bland characters".

I actually like the story and characters much more than Dragon Age (before you flame me, it's just an opinion!). There aren't that many bugs either, I haven't ran into any game breaking bugs myself (knowing full on to avoid overwriting saves).

Like all reviews, they were written by people like you and me, and apart from having a system they will always remain OPINIONS, and mine is that Divinity II deserves nothing less than an 8/10.

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sirchronos but divinity 2 got UNBALANCED SKRIMISHES like hell
first : the mid game boss (dragon) he can hit u for 255 damage from bow even if u make 90% of all side quests and kill every mobs ( exccept fjords cuz ther eu simply die from first imp) u still got alot lower lvl than this boss and he still hit u for huuge amount . if ur meale is not real problem cuz u can simply charhe him and in meale his not so hard,but if ur ranger or mage u simply die in first or second arrow and thre i nothing u can rly do with that .
but this is just begining, later situation is diferent every freeking mob is lower lvl than u and they cannot kill u even if ur freeking naked so by last few hours of game u got god mobde ( baal catch 2 fballs and die loool) but wtf last fight is again ultra hard if u like lvl 32 can be imposible. so u can find yourself in situation whee u cannot end game evn if whole echos lvl u end without use of a single potion .
the problem is lack of scaling . the damage is calculated on lvl not on real resits etc each lvl diferences between u and enemy make the hole bigger so even if u got end game gear and all stats like on end game ( using cheats) u will not be able to kill this 2 elites in mine tower when u on lvl 15 simply is imposible cuz u make 1 damage not mather what your stat are .. and this is fucking issue i use trainer to check this out and yep this is exacly truth



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The reviewer didn't mention the music?

Anyway, European RPGs have always had lower scores from US reviewers. I expected this, to be honest.

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The reviewer is the same guy who gave Dragon Age a score of 9.5, which I think says a lot. These are different style crpgs and although DA may have more polish, I find that D2 has more varied gameplay. It gets an 8.5 to 9 in my book.

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Very good review, bud no one word about one very good side of DD2 - music and characters animations.

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For the same, Drakensang (another Euro RPG) was technically a flawless game and graphically probably the best 3D RPG that came out in 2009 -- yet it was dismissed by Gamespot for being 'generic'... which Dragon Age is in every way. smile


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No, I do not agree, but it does not surprise me. The game has it's share of technical flaws, but at the core it is a more than solid RPG. Deserving of a 7.5 at the very least. Although, it will be getting an 8.5 from me.

On a side note, the 360 version will probably get an even lower score from Gamespot. Not that I really care either way, as it is not going to affect my enjoyment. I'm loving this game.

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Originally Posted by virumor
For the same, Drakensang (another Euro RPG) was technically a flawless game and graphically probably the best 3D RPG that came out in 2009


Agree - very good game in all aspects except HnS ending.

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I used to be font of Gamespot, but in the last years I saw they're way too harsh on games and then I began to take the average between Gamespots score and IGN's score.

Imo Gamespot can't review medium-quality games. Or it's top notch 90% or when it's a kinda-good game but could be better then it's rediulously low...

In my opinion, a reviewer that takes on every negative aspect (that sometimes just comes down to personal things)of this game, shouldn't be rating this game lower than 70%...

And for people that can look past the issues, they'll rate it for about 85%. So I feel it's somewhere between that, coming from Gamespot though it doesn't surprise me...

Last edited by Chimeray; 09/01/10 05:32 PM.
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One of the user reviews is spot-on. They should've this one as the 'official' one, imo.

Quote
European RPGs are like large women. The vast majority of people out there don't particularly care for them, and if they take a chance and go for one, they usually find themselves unable to get past their own insecurities and fail to appreciate the total package for what it is rather than dwell on the few shortcomings that get in the way. Fortunately, there are a small core group of oddball masochists that not only prefer these often criticized aberrations, but seek them out with a degree of fervor that makes them seem insane to most "regular" folks.

All kidding aside, this is truly how the European RPG is seen amongst the genre's hobbyists. While the mainstream gamers who grew up playing Morrowind or Oblivion prefer streamlined simplicity and extremely forgiving user interfaces that do all the work for them, European RPG enthusiasts would rather have obtuse quest descriptions and overly challenging combat. This small group of core gamers look at features like Oblivion's compass based quest marker system with the same level of disgust a member of Al Qaeda would show to a Christmas Pageant.

Divinity 2 is a perfect example of this. Like most European designed RPGs, it is rough-edged and lacking the kind of polish you'd see in a Bioware, Blizzard, or Bethesda title. Unlike those company's games, a European RPG like Divinity 2 gives you features no longer seen in modern titles such as supremely challenging combat and the lack of any "Hand-holding" during your questing. No compass markers, no journal hints, and very little in the way of help...that is what you'll get with this, or any other true-to-form European RPG.

The first Divinity game, along with Germany's own Gothic series, helped usher in the European RPG renaissance of the early 2000's and quickly became one of my favorite games of all time. Combining the addictive gameplay of Diablo, the landmass of Morrowind, the non linearity of Baldur's Gate and the world interaction and NPC schedules of Ultima 7, Divine Divinity was a one of a kind game that got nearly everything right. Though its spin-off Beyond Divinity strayed from that formula by becoming nothing more than a boring slog through a repetitive series of dungeons, I still had high hopes for the long-awaited sequel that just landed into my lap two weeks ago. What started as a small screenshot at the bottom of a preview article in a 2005 issue of Pc Gamer magazine had become a small DVD box sitting on my desk.

I knew the wait would be worth it, and I wasn't the least bit disappointed.

First of all, I should make mention of the fact that my first complete trip through the game was done on the xbox version. With my PC out of commission temporarily, I couldn't wait a week for my replacement video card to arrive so I bought the console version. While it was fun, that version of Divinity 2 was plagued by game save corruption, lock-ups, black screens, a poor frame rate, washed out textures and very choppy animation. Regardless, I still enjoyed the game immensely and was so addicted to it that the constant console freezes I experienced didn't in any way deter me from fully completing it. You can imagine then how much I enjoyed the game when I installed the PC version a few days later and saw that none of those glitches had made it across to my preferred platform.

Divinity 2's story picks up not too long after the events of the previous game in the series, Beyond Divinity. Damian, having tricked one of his adopted father's paladins into helping him escape his imprisonment in "Nemesis" (This game's version of Hell) has begun to move his dark army into the lands of Rivellon in an attempt to not only fulfill his destiny as the avatar of the Lord of Chaos, but to claim vengeance against the people who murdered his lover, Ygerna. Though unlike other bad guys in most stories, Damian has elected to keep his ever increasing military power a secret and his lack of interference with the world he wishes to conquer has conveniently lulled his enemies into adopting a false sense of security.

You start the game as a newly created member of the Dragon slayers, a group sworn to exterminate the last of the Dragons that once roamed the land of Rivellon before their purging nearly wiped them out. Damian, having long ago tricked the good people of Rivellon into believing the Dragons were evil and had betrayed the Divine and his Paladins, has been able to manipulate the Dragon slayers into ignoring him and instead chasing after the politically neutral Dragons. The ironic part is that the Dragon Slayers don't realize that it is the Dragons themselves who alone possess the power to defeat Damian, and that he is their one and only true foe.

The story is actually quite deep, and much to my surprise there were a couple of huge plot twists that even went so far as to cause serious (Or perhaps I should say angry) discussions on the web boards. The ending, in particular, has been the catalyst for many heated arguments amongst Divinity 2's fans. This is an unexpected thing in a European RPG, since they usually abandon involved plot lines in favor of a few extra large helpings of difficult combat.

...and combat is what you're going to get.

Like the other Divinity games, Ego Draconis has a very simple, easy to understand combat system that looks shallow on the surface but is actually as challenging as it is addictive. While you have the standard portfolio of action RPG moves and abilities, you don't get the luxury of being able to out level or dominate your enemies the way you do other RPGs. The designers purposely crafted the game in such a way that you never really outclass your enemy and you rarely find an area where you are significantly higher level than those you fight. This does lead to some frustrating moments where you simply can't figure out how to move on, but like the Gothic series it is a hurdle that can eventually be leapt over through clever skill and spell use as well as the proper equipment.

Drastic fluctuations in the difficulty level aside, Divinity 2's combat is every bit as satisfying as Diablo...if you're into spastic left mouse button clicking and action heavy sword & spell slinging that is. Diehards who demand slower paced combat might find themselves turned off by the game's high level of combat speed. To compensate for this, Larian put in a very clever and extremely helpful pause feature that can even be set to automatically go off when you reach a certain percentage of lost health. This addition to gameplay went unnoticed by me for the first few hours of gameplay, but upon finding it I soon grew to rely on it far more than I thought I ever would. Being able to quickly swap weapons or select items not on your quick bar at the exact moment in battle where you need them sounds like something I shouldn't be praising, but seeing such a feature in a 3rd person action RPG is unheard of.

Further adding some depth to the combat would be the class-less skill system given to the player upon their ascension to Dragon slayer. While this is nothing new to the RPG genre, I can't say that Divinity 2 disappointed me in this regard either. Talented role players who are accustomed to "speccing" characters and discovering exploits in games will find a lot to love in Divinity 2's open-ended skill system. With each skill having a maximum level that few people will ever reach even with a single minded devotion to one particular skill set, Divinity 2 had me erasing and resetting my character more times than I can count before I finally came upon a build that worked. Though many find that practice outdated and bothersome, I actually enjoyed re-rolling my hero over a dozen times and considered it to be the first sign that I was playing a proper RPG.

Divinity 2's story, combat scheme and its large open world are all things to be proud of, but it's the addition of the Dragon Form your character can take that is meant to set it apart from every other "Western style" RPG on the market.

The Dragon Form, which was heavily hyped in trailers during the lead up to the game's release, is only attained about halfway through the game. Though this is unfortunate and has caused others to give up before reaching that seminal point in the story, I feel it makes the ability seem all that more important. It isn't something you stumble into blindly, it's a power you fight tooth and nail for. You spend the first half of the game scrambling as quick as you can to grab it, then see the entire theme of the game change in one blinding instant once you do. While it doesn't help those who are overly impatient, the wait Divinity 2 forces you to endure in order to earn your dragon form makes the scene where you claim it feel much more powerful and emotional.

The dragon controls much like that other dragon-based action RPG, Drakan. You launch fireballs, breath fire, and can soar through the air with relative ease. You are mostly unfettered by anything other than a few large anti-dragon zones, some of which can be turned off while adventuring on the ground nearby them. Other than flying around the fjords near your battle tower and enjoying the freedom that flight brings, the very best moments of the game are when you get to fight one the several floating armadas that Damian uses to attack Rivellon. In those moments you fly through a large open air field torching enemy ballistas, engaging in dogfights with enemy dragons and occasionally landing on platforms to lower shields or fight that particular fleet's commander. It's this constant aerial fighting and landing on enemy ground to disable their magical shields that was the most enjoyable aspect of the game. While it's unfortunate that you don't get to it until the game's mid point, it's definitely worth the wait. Especially considering that each of these battles you engage in with Damian's flying fortresses (Of which there are 3) take about an hour to complete. It's truly astounding how much detail went into this one aspect of the game, and I'd love to see Larian make a spin-off with nothing BUT these battles.

The Dragon form may get all the press, but one of the least mentioned and most under-appreciated is the summoned creature you are allowed to build.

The creature, which you assemble courtesy of a necromancer, is fashioned from spare monster parts that are found randomly around the world. These body parts each have their own stats and abilities and can be combined together to form a faithful companion that will mindlessly fight for you whenever you call it forth. Though its AI and speed leave something to be desired, it becomes a valuable asset late in the game when it gains access to the Fatality and Rush Attack abilities. Even without those skills, it's still unusually hardy and can take much more of a beating than you can, making it the perfect distraction when fighting large groups of enemies. While it may not be as important to the game as the Dragon Form, I found myself becoming obsessed with locating new parts and getting the most out of my creature. By the end of the game he had around twelve hundred hit points and usually lasted longer than I did during a fight. The only downside is that there is no way to heal him, so when he dies you must wait for the cool down period to end so that you can summon him again.

Besides the Dragon Form and the Necromancer's pet, you also get to command a small tower of followers who work for you. Much like the castle in the original two Suikoden RPGs for the Playstation, you are given your own base of operations and are told to do your best to upgrade it. By completing quests for each of the tower's commanders you gain several benefits that you wouldn't enjoy otherwise. Find a gem for your enchanter and the material cost of enchanting weapons decreases. Locate your arena master's sister and steal her magical blade to increase the maximum level your skills can be trained to. Steal a book from a powerful mage and give it to your necromancer so he can sell you better limbs for your creature. You can even give better weapons and armor to your "Runners" and have them scour the world for crafting ingredients while you complete quests. It's not an excessively deep system, but the battle tower is a great addition to what is already a very unique game.

Aesthetically, the game is shockingly sound for a European title. By that I mean that its graphics, while quite good, don't send your system to a crashing halt due to poorly coded and/or outdated engines.

This goes double for the soundtrack, which was crafted by Divinity series veteran and gifted Russian musician Kirill Pokrovsky. His drum beats, wispy tunes and eerie dungeon music combine to make Divinity 2's soundtrack something to remember. Even when compared to Inon Zur's masterful Dragon Age tracks, Divinity 2 stands tall.

What on the surface looks like a run of the mill European action RPG (Is there even such a thing??) is made unique through the inclusion of the summoned creature system, the Battle Tower, and the truly phenomenal and well thought out Dragon mode. Putting all of this together in one RPG without having the other aspects of the game suffer is truly a monumental feat and one that shouldn't go unnoticed. If they find the right audience, Larian could make quite a name for themselves creating sequels using this same formula. Though it lacks the kind of polish a big budget game receives, it still manages to deliver one of the most unique and enjoyable RPG experiences of the past five years. Along with this, Risen, and Dragon Age I'd have to say that the old school PC RPG is making one heck of a comeback. If ever there was a time to own a top of the line PC and a credit card with a high limit, that time is now.

Divinity will undoubtedly be overlooked thanks to Dragon Age still being the "RPG du jour", but your addiction to Bioware's latest masterpiece should in no way deter you from taking a couple weeks out of your life to play through it. Larian has managed to create an open world game that does more than just throw a ton of side quests and a few puzzles at you before calling it an RPG. They crafted a unique title that stands out in the crowd and harkens back to a time ten years ago when Europe revitalized the PC RPG sub-genre with titles like Arx Fatalis, Gothic, and Sacred.

Sure, most gamers aren't too keen on buying RPGs made east of the Atlantic Ocean, but to those who do prefer the rough-edged games you find there, Divinity is pure gold. If you love your RPGs hard, lacking a little polish, but filled to the brim with interesting things to do and places to see, you'd be punishing yourself for not picking up this game. Though it truly doesn't shine until the midway point when you gain access to your powers, I still found myself addicted to it the same way I was to both Dragon age and Risen.

Simply put, if you love RPGs the way I do, you'll love Divinity 2.

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Have noticed only a couple bugs, and most of 'em are solvable.

To address what you were worried about in the review:
A) Bad animations? No, I like the way the character runs (if a bit weird), and my character does a flip at the top of ladders and it's neat the way she lands. Very Spider-Man.

B) Buggy has been addressed. I've played buggier.

C) A weak story? I dunno, medieval fantasy characters saving the world again? How is this different from any other fantasy RPG, Dragon Age included?

Don't sweat the review. C-Net/Gamespot likes whoever pays the most for their ads. They called the combat in Risen "troublesome," which it wasn't, and masturbated all over Dragon Age, which was a lot of fun, but I got tired of the zoned off sandbox they let you play in.

My only wish list for Divinity 2 would be a "block" feature like in Risen.

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