JFSOCC

I don't know why I forgot the disappearance of the dwarves. Morrowind was the first, and one of the very few games for my Xbox (very much a PC gamer) and I remember extensively searching for any information about what happened to the dwarves after I first got introduced to the mystery. Same thing with the vampires of vvarvendel. Self motivated quests are rare because it is hard to predict for a developer which ones will get any attention. As long as they don't worry about this and like to add to the mystery of the world, I think we'll be all right. Adding things to discover, with only hints of more, but no actual handholding is going to make the world a richer place, and I hope to see much content lacking exposition, or having only subtle exposition. (IE, rather, than "this happened", I'd like to see "Something clearly happened")

I remember having once zealously defended the coloured options for 10 pages. I know I'm in a minority, but I think that's the way to go to convey tone when it is ambiguous.

characters (either pc or npc) in well lit areas should have penalties seeing into darker areas. Whereas from the dark you have a bonus spotting those in lighter areas. No negative effects if either party is in the same area. So basically, I'd like night-blindness to be a real factor. Eyes need time to adjust.

Excellent post, previous posts on this forum have touched upon the subject, but few have managed to write it out as well as the OP does. I like the idea of breaking up the party and having each individual party member have some character exposition quests while "off duty" Where the game focuses on the specialities of individual characters to help build their character arcs, as well as demonstrate their individual skill sets better. Downtime seems a perfect moment to do this. Camp set-up can be a great time to deal with character exposition without it clunkily being shoe-horned in during party quests. For instance, as a rest mechanic, I'd enjoy it if there was something along the lines of (not mandatory) campfire tales, the player gets to act out part of the backstory of his or her companions. The better they are acted out, (game sets the player in the story) the better the results of resting. And the player learns something of his companions, or the companions learn something about the player. Resting itself needs to be improved upon and I've suggested (and others as well) to do something with it. Make it part of the gameplay rather than a restore button with risk involved. I think this would work towards that purpose.

two guys on the top look identical, the guy facing the door in that group seems to have different lighting on him than the others in the room, and his weapon seems awfully big. Their stance seems off somehow. I wonder why they're just standing there faffing about until the team comes in. The team itself seems positioned like the circle around a centre person formation you had in BG2, with one being pushed back slightly because of the barrier in front of him. I hope there are going to be different formations, perhaps you can save relative positions AS a formation, I dunno. All in all it looks pretty good, you spent attention to detail on the character design. I'm dubious about the placement of these what I am going to assume are enemies. (their heads, is this normal for them?) I'm not sure I like the big ears. But all criticism considered, I like what I see.

After witnessing a ruler commit terrible sin, you are exiled to the colonies, before you reach port a supernatural event shipwrecks you, floating into Defiance bay, where you get picked up. The event stirred something in you, if you choose to pursue it.

The ground shakes beneath you, You see a large chunk of the world torn from the ground into the sky, the part right next to the part you're standing on, it's frightening as hell. after the shaking stops you notice that you are standing in front of a floating mountain. To those familiar with the kickstarter endless paths image, they will instantly recognise it as such. After the shaking ends the player finds himself surrounded and needing to flee the barrage of falling debris. When you arrive at the nearest safe harbour, people ask you about what the hell happened, that's when the game starts.

I'm saying welcome to the forums Samurai Sanjuro, you'll fit right in!

false. But your entire team needs to die before it sticks.

I hope Obsidian doesn't sacrifice their artistic integrity to please a damn ratings board. slap an 18+ rating on it, call it obscene if you must. Steam sells all the Postal games, I don't see why they would censor P:E. Anyway, I do hope that the evil extremes discussed here are extremes in the game, because it's not going to be the tone of my playthrough.

precisely why I don't like random encounters.

Vampiric dagger: halves your total health, each hit converts half the damage done (after modifiers) into health for the character, up to 10% above their current max health (which is still halved)

I'd rather you didn't exactly know what you were stealing and that the difficulty (red/yellow/purple, to avoid colour blind problems) is determined not by item, but by item slot. So you know there is a red item slotor a yellow slot or you're stealing from. If you don't first investigate your victim, you'll have to steal blindly. Perhaps an interesting scouting/investigation/research skill working in conjunction with pickpocket would make the skill more dynamic. the position from which you steal should matter too. If I walk up to someone and take something from his or her sightline, that should be easier to spot. (duh) I also think that rather than dealing with absolutes (red is always get caught, etc) it should be a likelihood, one which decreases with player skill. I proposed somewhere else that in cases of a pickpocket getting noticed, it might be nice if there is a grace period in which you can flee the scene before it gets noticed. If you can flee on time, you're off the hook. Some targets may notice some thefts faster than others. I'd like to make it so that while possible, unnoticed theft is only possible if you are extremely highly skilled, or focus on only the easiest pickings(So,you'd pick the green slots only.) you would not know what it contains unless it's visible. so, purse slot shows the purse, but not what's in it, pocket slot is hidden, only if another source tells you what's in there will you know. You can try to steal it, but there may be nothing in there, or it might be irrelevant. wrist slot would show someone's bracelet, unless it's covered with armour. I would also avoid the "just looking" trope by starting a timer the moment you try to pickpocket someone, each theft also takes time of the timer. (based on skill level check vs someone's perception check) a well planned theft can be executed with bonuses. a partner distracting the victim, a public distraction (smokebomb, a fight nearby), an unconscious victim has no defence, inebriation or intoxication (make someone drunk, or slip a roofie in their drink. lure then into a opium den and see the smoke get to them) some items may give bonuses too. (specialized equipment for a specific slot, specialised training for a specific slot) And if my actions become bolder, I'd love to see some reactivity in the world for it. More guards in places that have seen a lot of burglary or theft, some npc banter. Warrants with the wrong name on it, reward posters for information, etc.

Beacon helmet. Allows you to see in the dark as if it were day, notifies all hostile creatures within a 30 yard radius to your presence.

I like this idea, but then there should be some enemies which choose to keep hacking at your team even after some have dropped. (to make sure) so that feigning is a risky proposition which doesn't always pay off.

I have no problem with making an "evil" character truly vile. that includes sexual abuse (rape), childkilling, public humiliation, abuse of power, manipulating, mindgames, torture, coercion of any kind. But I like that many of you find these things going to far, that says something about you.

it's all about this magical stuff called unobtanium, found deep in the earth's crust, or occasionally under oversized trees.

I believe there will be permadeath, so no resurrecting your falling comrades.

Not only is combat not my strong suit, but I find that activated abilities are often only useful in a specific set of circumstances. This is why personally if I can choose I prefer to have passive bonuses. It takes no brain-power, is always active, and does not depend on my opponents. That's not to say I'm against activated abilities, quite the contrary, but if it requires any type of twitchy reaction skills on my part, I'm not likely to use it. Activated abilities which will have a guaranteed effect are more likely to be used by me. For instance if something causes bleeding, and some foes can't bleed, then it better be frikking awesome for me to consider it. If something causes knockdown and it works on all foes, I know which one I'll be choosing. It's a bit of my Timmy (Timmy Johnny and Spike) mindset: I build my decks based on what I can influence. If I don't know my opponents, it's best not to make a build depending on their behaviour.

If you're going to have racial bonuses or drawbacks, they have to work for/against you regardless of what class you pick.

http://forums.obsidian.net/topic/63145-small-suggestions-easily-implemented-ideas-quickfire-thoughts/?p=1356105

Can I drop this off here? http://forums.obsidian.net/topic/63542-idea-link-stats-with-gameplay-for-pickpocketing/

successfully making mods is also good experience for those seeking a job in the industry. For that reason alone I think moddability is important. but as others have mentioned, mods can keep a game's popularity going years past its release date.

I haven't played some of the listed games, but the companions which have stood out for me the most in a positive sense were the KOTOR:TSL companions. Especially the voice acting was spot on.

http://www.dorkly.com/comic/53147/the-internets-dream-game