Hawke64

Larian's D&D game. Act 3 start Act 3, Dark Urge and Orin Act 3, Gortash Act 3, ending

Finished the second playthrough as the Dark Urge. Slightly broke the game in the process (Act 3 and end-game spoilers)*. Most importantly, discovered that 1. Grub the cat can die; 2. In order to save him, a story companion (not a hireling) must remain in the camp during Act 3 and Grub's human (a red-haired child with heterochromia) must be given food or gold upon starting Act 3. The human is unlikely to be avoided on the first playthrough, considering the location. * About the other unavoidable combat sequence (between Act 2 and Act 3):

The hirelings might be interesting - level-appropriate backgrounds and no inclination to bother the PC (also more variety of classes and races). Though, I'd like them having 1-2 lines of dialogue (as is, they are corpses lore-wise). With the Origin companions, I think they calm down and focus on their own quests after Act 1.

Same, but they might have wanted to show a short trailer with functional gameplay, which is easier to do with combat rather than dialogues.

It's one of the unmarked "romance" options, as far as I know. ("Do you see me differently now?", if I'm not mistaken). I hope they will be more transparent in the Definitive Edition (either rewriting to "Hey, wanna bang?" or "You look like a swell lass/lad/person" or just adding the [flirt] tag). Edit. The difference between the writers' intentions* and the player's expectations** might lead to rather uncomfortable experiences and situations, not counting the bugs (scene triggers not registering correctly). @Bartimaeus Sorry. I think the only other "romance" scene that might be unpleasant and is easy to encounter happens in Act 3. Though, I haven't used Long Rests in Act 1 much and these scenes are mostly there. * ("obviously, the PC would ask if Lae'zel is interested in casual sex with them right after meeting her") ** (going through the neutral-looking dialogue options one by one to get the general idea about the companion)

Some events in Act 3 do lack reactivity (like throwing a boss into the chasm only for it to climb back to die in the post-battle cut-scene), though I am unsure if "not implemented" content counts as "cut". It didn't have to be a one "epic" cut-scene. Slides would be sufficient and relatively easy to do (1 already drawn concept art or screenshot + 1-2 sentences). Though, getting the quest flags to be set correctly might be not so easy. I suppose, the Definitive Edition will fix most of the issues that are not considered "features" and it is nice that the developers are listening to the feedback. Still, would have preferred a more finished game after 3 years of EA. (Hard to balance the negativity).

I mostly agree. Considering that time is frozen until you reach a location (as a piece of the map) and an invisible timer starts ticking when you do, these locations could have been separated into smaller and more manageable maps, thus providing the feeling of actual travel. The sense of direction is kind of present in the journal (which I read on the second playthrough): need to find a healer > there might be one in the settlement > the locals said he was kidnapped > need to save the healer > need to kill the goblin leaders > need to travel to the Spoiler-rise Tower. In Act 2 it's mostly following a certain NPC's orders and another NPC's in Act 3 + "find allies" (whom you won't need anyway). But, as you said, if you follow this logical path without exploring significantly more (after you've been told that the best healer there cannot help you, because your tadpole is "special", so in-character you know that it is useless), you will be under-levelled and under-equipped. To be fair, Larian's D&D game offers quite a lot of environmental interactivity (like TES - not much consequences unless really specific and intentional*, but when it works, it kind of breaks the intended path), allows to skip a lot of content should one want to do so, which is very rare, thus admirable, and the PC can actually jump, which even rarer in CRPGs (probably, because you usually don't need to, but still). On the other hand, considering how real-time everything is, the turn-based combat and the lack day/night cycle and NPC routine are very noticeable. *Could have been done as dialogue options - "[Str 18] Do you want to build a tower of boxes and jump over the wall?" or "[Wis 18] Do you want to put a bucket on the merchant's head?". I think, The Age of Decadence did it. You indeed can and it is not exactly challenging to do, though the "romance" probably should be in quotation marks.

Was looking at the cats in Google Colab. Probably, the best optional feature.

https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/shadow-gambit-studio-mimimi-are-closing-down-to-prioritize-our-well-being It was unexpected.

Thorm probably has about as much screen time as most non-companions.

Larian's D&D Game. Continued my second playthrough. Haven't updated the game, so some of the things might have been fixed with the patch. I discovered that my Str Sorcerer can break most of the doors and walls, thus I got a rogue much later. The PC's facial animations are still ridiculous and it would have been better if the camera was pointing where the PC was looking at and shown only their back and shoulders. I also was able to recruit Minthara, went with her to the Goblin Camp (to get the explosives), and told the guard that we were there to see Minthara (there was no additional Minthara). Somehow, I doubt that we were supposed to return to the area. Act 2 spoiler: The Dark Urge Origin spoilers for Act 1. The final boss of the act was defeated with the help of the explosives and fire arrows and the party reached the third act at level 4 (Minthara at 6) in 4 hours. I found out the "intended" use of the Chest of the Mundane when looking through the patch notes, so the Chest was most helpful.

Ketheric Thorm is the main antagonist of the second act (3 acts in total), so it could be said that he is present, though my interactions with the character consisted mostly of Skip, Skip, Skip, Combat, Loot. The trailer: --- Continued my second playthrough. Haven't updated the game, so some of the things might have been fixed with the patch. I discovered that my Str Sorcerer can break most of the doors and walls, thus I got a rogue much later. I also was able to recruit Minthara, went with her to the Goblin Camp (to get the explosives), and told the guard that we were there to see Minthara (there was no additional Minthara). Somehow, I doubt that we were supposed to return to the area. The PC's facial animations are still ridiculous and it would have been better if the camera was pointing where the PC was looking at and shown only their back and shoulders. Also, now the party consists mostly of hirelings and it feels somehow jollier (no one threatens the PC). At some point the Dark Urge Butler (I forgot the name) appeared where the other party members could reach him and initiated a dialogue with the PC. The party got 10XP and the next dialogue with the Butler was just Dark Urgency standing and talking to himself with the Butler's voice. The final boss of the act was defeated with the help of the explosives and fire arrows and the party reached the third act at level 4 (Minthara at 6). Edit. Dark Urgency discovered his love for music and decided to learn to play violin (I wanted to get the expertise in Persuasion and something more melee-focused, like the College of Swords subclass, because, considering the play style, a Paladin Oath would not last long). The newly-hired wizard covered the casting aspect.

Larian's D&D game. Spoilers for Act 3 (main story) The final battle: Romance: Side quests:

Agreed. The two things in the context of Larian's game specifically are the immersive sim elements (you can build a little tower out of the random items you find and it will mechanically affect the environment and progression) and the lack of options to disable it (or any other optional systems, unlike Solasta). And it was rather uncomfortable that some important interactive objects were not highlighted. The puzzle leading to the Underdark and the illithid regenerative things, in particular. I guess, if the ending at least told the outcomes for the major NPCs and areas (1 2D picture with 1 sentence of text per NPC/area), it would have been more acceptable. I am unsure why the connection with the original series was pursued in the manner Larian used. Granted, some of it I've read about on the forums (and not experienced myself), but even the parts unavoidably encountered on the critical path were odd. The player usually cares about their NPC companions to some extent, while humans in general are less likely to purposefully seek conflict in a limited social circle due to the social contract. So, unless there is a critical plot point where someone's values actively oppose each other, the companions not fighting seems realistic enough. And there is companions' personal emotional connection to the player's character, which supports not stabbing other companions in the face (unless asked to). Also, I prefer when games consider friendships to be as valuable as romances.

Finished Stray Gods. It is an interesting musical/visual novel and a decent murder mystery (providing that the player can guess the murderer, but not the motive or the weapon, quite quickly, the MC is basically a bard, there is no typical evidence analysis). The romance subplot was connected to the main one without overshadowing it. There are some plot holes, but nothing critical, though the lack of fail states (accusing a wrong suspect or failing to obtain evidence or dying) or early endings (finding the murderer through unconventional options) are somehow disappointing. The visual design is excellent, from character art to location design to the minimalistic animations. The sound and VA are good overall and the branching songs are very impressive, though there are issues with different volume for different lines even within the same dialogue. The manual saving via Windows Explorer was rather annoying and could have been implemented in-game. Edit. The second personality trait (out of 3) can be chosen at the beginning of Act 3.

If you mean "good" as an alignment, then, mostly, yes. With a certain disguise it is possible to avoid confrontations with the goblins in Act 1 and the only companion quest (that I remember) that has combat at that point is to defeat 3 devils. Helping the refugees, on the other hand, requires either to rescue the archdruid or to "encourage" his replacement to assist. Not sure about saving the gnomes in Grymforge (I murdered the duergar), but it might be possible. In Act 2, In Act 3, I had also forgotten about the tutorial fight against 3 imps and the encounter at the helm (though, one just has to cross the area and interact with the "wheel" there).

I am not sure if the previous attempt, Baldur's Gate Reloaded (based on the NWN2 tools), has succeeded. This kind of projects seems to be too ambitious to be completed by volunteers in a reasonable amount of time. Though, Skyblivion might be close to the full release.

Just in case, the combat is avoidable up to the middle of Act 2*. But yes, it is occasionally uncomfortable, even more so when there is any sort of verticality (the camera does not go up or down). *though, the skill checks or stealth might be just as uncomfortable, considering how quick saving and D20 system usually interact and there is no pause (companions can and will step onto discovered traps).

Each companion has 1-2 quests in each act + long rest scenes. Though, some have more than others. Structurally, it felt similar to D:OS2 - introduction => development* => conclusion (branching). The approach is technically correct in terms of pacing, narrative, and interactivity, but it never felt good or engaging for me in any Larian game (that is to say, the issue is not with the structure). In the D&D game in particular, it might be because of the bugs with the closure/camp scenes - the companions cannot wait for 5 minutes and have to schedule their dialogue at a separate Long Rest, which might be hours after their quest. It was especially ridiculous with having Wyll and Karlach together in the camp within clear lines of sight before their scene triggered. *in the D&D game some branching for a certain companion is available at that point. Judging by the rumours about cut or altered content and the previous Enhanced/Definitive/Developer's Cut Editions, this is a very reasonable prediction.

I think, if you've finished the Grove/Goblins storyline before reaching the approval thresholds, the romance events don't happen. At least, it was the first thing I did and then had those scenes only in Act 3 from a new companion and the Dream Guardian.

The Draconic Bloodline Sorcerer subclass - the scales are customisable and depend on the bloodline chosen, though can be removed.

Started Stray Gods. It is semi-interactive musical, though I would not call it "Roleplaying". The VA is actually good, the lyrics vary from "There is no inertia in the ocean" to decent. The graphics and visual style consist of mostly 2D images with light animations, but it is expressive and readable. The main personality trait seems to be locked in the first song, which was not obvious and is not convenient. The game uses auto-saving into a single slot (3 slots in total).

I think, it is the only instance where the PC auto-talks with a cinematic camera. The Dark Urge Origin: Act 2, end: Act 2 (some spoilers for locations and side quests):

Tried to start another playthrough as a wood elf (higher speed) sorcerer (Enhanced Leap and Misty Step) named Dark Urgency with 17 Str (couldn't get to 18) and 8 Int (don't need it anyway). The playthrough went reasonably well until I got into a battle against a certain lvl 11 boss and his skeleton friends. The NPC ally did what she could but not enough to win. It is the only necessary combat encounter to reach Act 3, because otherwise the army of the Absolute is blocking the road and walking into them results in being thrown into the corpse pile in the Tower (even after the departure cut-scene). Not sure if the character's class affects it, but I strongly doubt it. An a positive note, I saved the tiefling bard with some help from Shadowheart. In the morning, the bard stood in a red circle for some reason and did not take the party to the Grove, but we still got a follower. On a related note, if the PC is dead when Raphael visits the camp during Long Rest and the party does not have any resurrection scrolls, it soft-locks the game - the devil does not want to talk to a companion. The butler (?) did not appear yet. I probably will try to roll back a bit or try the same with a bard. Thank you for the information (wasn't familiar with the class' implementation in the previous editions) and I agree that the ridiculousness is one of the main points of Larian's design.

Elden Ring. Finally killed Malenia. Lord of Blood's Exultation (the power-up on bleed talisman), Morgott's Curved Sword, and the mimic tear ash were the most important aspects of it. Somehow, the mimic and I were able to stagger the boss relatively reliably. The final battle was very impressive in terms of visual and audio design, though the boss' moveset in the second phase was rather annoying - I spent most of the time chasing the boss. Overall, I did not dislike Elden Ring as I did Sekiro or Mortal Shell, but it was less enjoyable than Dark Souls (1, 2, SotFS, 3, Remaster) due to the open world structure and the speed of the game combined with the controls. Though, the visual and audio design are excellent.