Divine Divinity 2: Ego Draconis

[Humodour]

So I was randomly installing Divine Divinity on WINE since everyone says it works flawlessly there. I needed to get a patch so I went to Larian's website. Meanwhile I'm wondering "So whatever happened to Divine Divinity 2? It's been 7 years now." Lo and behold, I am greeted by the following:

 

http://www.larian.com/egodraconis.php

 

Divine Divinity 2 comes out this year. Anybody else excited? Looks like they've got a new engine, and you get to play as a dragon lord - so your character can switch between fighting as a dragon or a human. Sounds cool. I hope they still have character classes, unless they have something more akin to SPECIAL.

[mkreku]

Funny you should mention it, I went there yesterday and watched the videos of it. I'm cautiously excited about it.

[Humodour]

Oh, it's definitely a new game engine. Looks like they've opted for 3D:

 

This looks like a shot of you in dragon form, flying:

 

Looks like you can play as a female, so I imagine face customisation and stuff is also in:

 

Playing as a guy:

 

Dual-wielding:

 

Playing as a dragon, spitting fire at enemies:

 

This is an RPG first and foremost, so before you leave comments with "GRAFFICS R SO ****" keep that in mind. Personally I'll be happy if the graphics aren't the best thing out there, as it should hopefully mean more focus on the actual gameplay.

 

Frankly, I must admit I'm disappointed it's not 2D isometric, or at least Dungeon Siege style. What's the world coming to?

 

More screens here: http://www.gamershell.com/pc/divinity_2_eg...creenshots.html

 

Spellcasting:

[fastpunk]

I've heard about it in passing a couple of times, but never took an interest. Until now at least. It looks good, but there's little to go on. I mean a teaser video, some screenshots, and a feature list is not that much. I'm curious though, as it could be good.

[Humodour]

Some info:

 

- Seamless world

- "Dialogs are presented in a cinematic way with all the graphical fluff you

[Pope]

Since Larian Studios is from Belgium and so am I, I'll definitely support them, but I'm not getting hyped. The first 2/3 of DD1 was pretty good, the last 1/3 was very rushed. I never finished DD1.5, Beyond Dvinity.

[Maria Caliban]

I want this.

 

I've played both of the Divine/Beyond Divinity games and thought they were great fun.

[Jaesun]

I LOVED Divine Divinity. I mean, seriously, any game that features a portable bed that you can cram into a back pack == PURE AWESOME.

 

But seriously, I loved it. I never played the 2nd game as... well I just did not seem like the game for me.

 

I am *cautiously* optimistic in Div 2. In that I'm afraid they are going to do, what funcom did with the sequel to The Longest Journey. In that, they were all like "OMG!!! LET'S MAEKE THE GAME MODERN 3D AND IT WILL BE LIKE ALL AWESOME!!!11!!"

 

And well Dreamfall is what it is. A horrific game, with horrific controls. I just can't get myself to finish it.

 

I'll just hope that Larian sticks to what was fun in DD and improves on that for Div 2. What I have read so far looks good...

[Maria Caliban]

And well Dreamfall is what it is. A horrific game, with horrific controls. I just can't get myself to finish it.

 

80% of the time Dreamfall is exactly the same as TLJ when it comes to gameplay and controls. It's a point and click adventure title. You click on stuff, combine stuff in your inventory, and use the stuff in your inventory on the environment. That's the gameplay. Dreamfall added in a few sections of 'fighting' where you hit the mouse button a few times and everyone around you dies.

 

The puzzles are the same quality as TLJ, the graphics and voice acting are better, but the story isn't completed. It makes no sense to consider TLJ good and DF 'horrible.'

[Sannom]

I'm HS here, but

 

The puzzles are the same quality as TLJ

 

are you kidding??? Even for me, who isn't the brightest gamer out there, the puzzles in Dreamfall were far easier than the ones in The Longest Journey. I especially remember a "puzzle" where you simply had to go to the same guy three times to ask magical objects for specific use. He didn't ask you anything in exchange, he just gave it to you. I was absolutely frustrated by that one!

 

I enjoyed the game though. But it gave you the feeling that you were playing an interactive movie instead of a real game.

 

In that I'm afraid they are going to do, what funcom did with the sequel to The Longest Journey. In that, they were all like "OMG!!! LET'S MAEKE THE GAME MODERN 3D AND IT WILL BE LIKE ALL AWESOME!!!11!!"

 

3D doesn't fit adventure games, but it fits well with RPG those times (at least for the ones where you direct only one character. I hate it for party-based RPGs. Hate the cameras). And Divine Divinity 2 seems gorgeous, while you couldn't say that Dreamfall felt "artistic" when compared to its predecessor. It even felt uglier.

[Maria Caliban]

are you kidding??? Even for me, who isn't the brightest gamer out there, the puzzles in Dreamfall were far easier than the ones in The Longest Journey. I especially remember a "puzzle" where you simply had to go to the same guy three times to ask magical objects for specific use. He didn't ask you anything in exchange, he just gave it to you. I was absolutely frustrated by that one!

 

The puzzles in the Longest Journey are pretty damn easy. And yes, there are times in TLJ where the puzzle solution is 'Talk to X, talk to Y, and talk to X again.' Typically the only difficulty is noticing something small on the ground and I don't consider pixel hunting good gameplay.

 

 

 

3D doesn't fit adventure games..

 

Sure it does. The problem is that adventure games have tiny budgets and 3D requires more money.

 

...while you couldn't say that Dreamfall felt "artistic" when compared to its predecessor. It even felt uglier.

 

Seriously, how long ago did you play The Longest Journey? The visual artistry of Dreamfall is so much stronger than The Longest Journey that I'm starting to think you're operating on pure nostalgia.

Edited April 24, 2009 by Maria Caliban

[Azure79]

I loved Divine Divinity. It was a pleasant mix of actiony combat, magic, humor and role-playing. I also felt the last sections were rushed and one skill in particular was way overpowered.

 

But, I'm looking forward to DD2. Finally I get to be the dragon in a RPG.

[Morgoth]

Well the game is supposed to come out on July 31th in German speaking countries. But I'll remain sceptical. Gotta try out a demo, and if there's no demo, then there will be no purchase.

[Jerky]

I had the first game back when it came out, but never got the chance to play it much as I didn't really focus enough to play it. Does any one know any stores that sell it? So I can pick it up and play it in time to get 2.

Edited April 25, 2009 by Jerky

[Humodour]

I had the first game back when it came out, but never got the chance to play it much as I didn't really focus enough to play it. Does any one know any stores that sell it? So I can pick it up and play it in time to get 2.

 

 

Hmm. Good Old Games doesn't stock it. Have you tried ordering it in at various computer stores? You don't need to play DD1 to enjoy DD2, I can tell you that now (just judging by what info has come out). It's a fun game, though.

 

Morgoth: You need a demo before you'll buy a game? Doesn't that cause problems for you since most games don't have demos anymore?

[bhlaab]

Isn't this the one where the trailer says

 

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN A DRAGON HUNTER.... BECOMES A DRAGON

 

because that isn't marketing that makes people want to play it. someone should tell them that.

[Kaftan Barlast]

Braindead hack 'n slash GRPG? No thanks, I played the first game and it made me vomit with boredom.

 

 

 

also note: dragons ARE NOT COOL, OK?! They never were and never will be.

Edited April 28, 2009 by Kaftan Barlast

[Humodour]

Braindead hack 'n slash GRPG? No thanks, I played the first game and it made me vomit with boredom.

 

Didya read my info post? Obviously not.

 

also note: dragons ARE NOT COOL, OK?! They never were and never will be.

 

Liar.

[~Di]

I am cautiously interested. I absolutely loved Divine Divinity, thought it was campy and great fun... at least until the drudgery of the final chapter. Then I snapped up and played Beyond Divinity. What a horrendous disappointment. Not sure what to expect of Divine Divinity 2, but I hope they went back to the strong points of the original and learned from the mistakes made with their second game, which was so horrendous I only managed to play about 3/4 of it before I gave up entirely.

[Bos_hybrid]

Seemed promising until:

 

Braindead hack 'n slash I played the first game and it made me vomit with boredom.

 

So is this series like the Diablo/Sacred games?

[~Di]

Seemed promising until:

 

Braindead hack 'n slash I played the first game and it made me vomit with boredom.

 

So is this series like the Diablo/Sacred games?

 

I didn't think it was anything like Diablo... which I dispise, or Sacred which kind of left me cold. It was fun, campy, and humorous, but not without its flaws. You'll notice that there are many positive posts here from people who truly enjoyed it.

 

There are many folks in here, though, who are super-critical, and sometimes I wonder if they have ever played a game that they didn't hate. You should probably go review all the screenshots in the link Krezeck supplied to get a feel for what the game will look like.

[Kaftan Barlast]

DD has some minor roleplaying elements, but it was definently a lot more grinding than anything else. It had more in common with Diablo than Baldurs gate 2 or the Witcher.

[Bos_hybrid]

You should probably go review all the screenshots in the link Krezeck supplied to get a feel for what the game will look like.

 

My bad, should of explained better, I had checked the screen shots and it looked interesting, what I wanted to know was whether it was just hack n slash, or if it had action and an emphasis on NPC interaction.

 

However reading the forums:

 

Divine Divinity is a unique game, combining the addictive traits of a hack'slash action/RPG with the open world, interaction and quests of Ultima along with a sense of humour and quirky style from RPGWatch

 

After reading that, I'll keep an eye on it.

[mkreku]

Divine Divinity reminded me of the old Ultima's in some ways. Except for the excessive fighting. That's the only aspect of it that reminds me of Diablo. There's a lot of clicking involved in getting around the open gameworld.. But the quests were interesting and at times it felt like an adventure game because of their difficulty. If you make it out of the village (where you start), you'll enjoy it. I thought the village was the worst and what most reminded me of Diablo, which is why I always (not so) secretly believe that people who refer to it as a Diablo clone never bothered to play past that damn village. And the village is probably less than 10% of the entire game.

[HoonDing]

Strange, I'm Belgian yet I've never heard from this game series before, nor its developer. I should be ashamed.