Jump to content

How are people finding the beta?


Recommended Posts

There are a number of really killer game-destroying bugs, but I managed to get through a few hours of the beta without hitting any of them last night (unlike previous attempts) and I had a really good time. The balance feels pretty wonky at the moment and there are the aforementioned bugs, but content-wise I'm really pleased with the beta, and I'm sure the balance and bugs will be fixed over the next few months.

  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

It would be nice if they implemented a bare bones turn based system

 

At the present I am tempted to agree. I'll withhold a bit to give them time to maybe fix the combat with patches but I think turn-based would suit a game like this better. I am already pausing often in fights so it's not like it's a big stretch to put it in.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

In regards to giving up or being outraged by the Beta: The Beta is good, no doubt about it, even though there are bugs - and not few of them. But to expect of a beta to behave like a final product (which is actually the result of extensive Beta testing) is nothing short of delusion, I think that is something of a trap that is easily fallen into. This is what a Beta means - testing. Its priority doesn't lie in making us entertained but discontent, its purpose is that of critical questioning - not pleasure. My point is this, we cannot derive a stable idea or meaning of the game, if the game itself isn't stable - which it is not. That is what we signed up for when we agreed to do the Beta, though, isn't it? To play and look at the game in its current iteration and bring forth our feedback so that the game may become stable, yet more creative, and fun. And it is really only then, when the game is final and stable, that we can achieve a stable idea of it. At that point, it's quite justifiable to be outraged about it, to want to quit it, or to enjoy the hell of it - but, until then, we must work with unstable ideas and find out how they can become stable - which to me, is really the fun part of a Beta. Although, if people wish to give up on it already, that's quite alright too.

  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

 

so it's not like it's a big stretch to put it in.

 

 

Hahahahahahahahaha

 

* pauses*

 

Hahahahahahahhahaha

 

Yeah, like scrapping the combat engine, mechanics and ruleset and starting all over again, right?

sonsofgygax.JPG

Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

It would be nice if they implemented a bare bones turn based system

 

At the present I am tempted to agree. I'll withhold a bit to give them time to maybe fix the combat with patches but I think turn-based would suit a game like this better. I am already pausing often in fights so it's not like it's a big stretch to put it in.

 

Unfortunately problems with implementing it aside, this will never happen.  It is a modern take on the IE games, and the IE games are real time with pause.  To deviate from that would be too big of a change and would hurt the feel of the game and the stated goals of the kickstarter.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

It boggles the mind that some folks haven't figured out that beta is...  beta.  - an unpolished, non-optimized, feature-incomplete, bug-filled first look.  That's it.  It's basically a moving screenshot when compared to the final product. 

 

These rash judgments I see time and again on game forums make me wonder why companies allow buy-in beta participation (without NDA's) in the first place.

 

Bottom line:  relax, Chicken Little.

Edited by Chaos Theory
  • Like 4
Link to comment
Share on other sites

From what I can read and see, the Beta is indeed full of bugs, BUT, on the other hand, I must show Obisidian some respect: I am pretty sure they knew what a buggy mess the beta is, and releasing it the way they did actually deserves some respect.

And, at least for me, it shows they do believe in their product; they are certain they will be able to hammer things out till December.

 

Just think of Divinity: OS and its BETA-status...it was a disaster, yet the game was pretty sweet on release.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

It boggles the mind that folks haven't figured out that beta is...  beta.  - and incomplete, non-optimized, feature-incomplete, bug-filled first look.  That's it.  It's basically a moving screenshot when compared to the final product. 

 

These rash judgments I see time and again on game forums make me wonder why companies allow buy-in beta participation (without NDA's) in the first place.

 

The topic specifically asked what people thought of the beta and people are being honest. That doesn't mean they didn't expect some things to be that bad. Some stuff is really bad, maybe that's to be expected in a beta but there's no point beating around the bush about it

Edited by Bli1942
Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

 

It would be nice if they implemented a bare bones turn based system

 

At the present I am tempted to agree. I'll withhold a bit to give them time to maybe fix the combat with patches but I think turn-based would suit a game like this better. I am already pausing often in fights so it's not like it's a big stretch to put it in.

 

Unfortunately problems with implementing it aside, this will never happen.  It is a modern take on the IE games, and the IE games are real time with pause.  To deviate from that would be too big of a change and would hurt the feel of the game and the stated goals of the kickstarter.

 

 

Well If this is to be completely wedded to IE games then fine and I got that that was what was desired. I merely stated a preference on my part. However combat doesn't entirely make or break the game for me. However it is not satisfactory in it's present state but I am sure they will fix it.

 

Thanks for the rational response. The other one I didn't care to dignify with one. People are going to present opinions on a forum. You may not like them but belittling them says more about you than the post you've belittled.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

From what I can read and see, the Beta is indeed full of bugs, BUT, on the other hand, I must show Obisidian some respect: I am pretty sure they knew what a buggy mess the beta is, and releasing it the way they did actually deserves some respect.

And, at least for me, it shows they do believe in their product; they are certain they will be able to hammer things out till December.

 

Just think of Divinity: OS and its BETA-status...it was a disaster, yet the game was pretty sweet on release.

 

I backed D:OS too and played it in ALPHA and even in alpha it was a lot better presented than this PoE "beta" is. People will not want to hear that of course but that's my opinion. It does not mean I do not see a bright future for this game or that I think it's a failure right now. I don't think that at all but I've played this "beta" and it's in a lot rougher state than D:OS's beta was. That's just my opinion based on my experience of both. But I think they (Obsidian) will work hard to sort the bugs out and I've seen rough betas so I am not in panic mode. Yet.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

 

It would be nice if they implemented a bare bones turn based system

 

At the present I am tempted to agree. I'll withhold a bit to give them time to maybe fix the combat with patches but I think turn-based would suit a game like this better. I am already pausing often in fights so it's not like it's a big stretch to put it in.

 

Unfortunately problems with implementing it aside, this will never happen.  It is a modern take on the IE games, and the IE games are real time with pause.  To deviate from that would be too big of a change and would hurt the feel of the game and the stated goals of the kickstarter.

 

 

Yep it obv won't happen even though I think they could have made an even better game using it. A bare bones turn based system at this tage would not require them to shelve all their work by any means @montecarlo, but they still won't do that.

 

The combat needs the most work out of anything though, at the moment I'd hazard a guess that maybe 1/50 people would play more than an hour of the game before quitting. Yes it will be improved by release as this is a beta, but they have a long way to go and I expect the dreaded release delay announcement by October

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

From what I can read and see, the Beta is indeed full of bugs, BUT, on the other hand, I must show Obisidian some respect: I am pretty sure they knew what a buggy mess the beta is, and releasing it the way they did actually deserves some respect.

And, at least for me, it shows they do believe in their product; they are certain they will be able to hammer things out till December.

 

Just think of Divinity: OS and its BETA-status...it was a disaster, yet the game was pretty sweet on release.

To expect the beta to be anything other than a buggy mess is delusional.

  • Like 5

"Things are funny...are comedic, because they mix the real with the absurd." - Buzz Aldrin.

"P-O-T-A-T-O-E" - Dan Quayle

Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

From what I can read and see, the Beta is indeed full of bugs, BUT, on the other hand, I must show Obisidian some respect: I am pretty sure they knew what a buggy mess the beta is, and releasing it the way they did actually deserves some respect.

And, at least for me, it shows they do believe in their product; they are certain they will be able to hammer things out till December.

 

Just think of Divinity: OS and its BETA-status...it was a disaster, yet the game was pretty sweet on release.

To expect the beta to be anything other than a buggy mess is delusional.

 

I agree, though I can see from where the outrage across the forums is coming from: Most Betas in the last years, especially in the MMO market, haven`t been actually betas but pure marketing tools. The games were "finished" to a 99,99% degree, and that is something most players simply got used to.

Playing real betas like this one is uncommon for today`s standards. Just think of EA. They release "finished" games in BETA-status and just skipp the entire semi-public Q&A in fear of bad press.

  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

From what I can read and see, the Beta is indeed full of bugs, BUT, on the other hand, I must show Obisidian some respect: I am pretty sure they knew what a buggy mess the beta is, and releasing it the way they did actually deserves some respect.

And, at least for me, it shows they do believe in their product; they are certain they will be able to hammer things out till December.

 

Just think of Divinity: OS and its BETA-status...it was a disaster, yet the game was pretty sweet on release.

Well said, Bugs et all I enjoy playing this far more than I did the original Divinity beta release.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

It boggles the mind that folks haven't figured out that beta is...  beta.  - and incomplete, non-optimized, feature-incomplete, bug-filled first look.  That's it.  It's basically a moving screenshot when compared to the final product. 

 

These rash judgments I see time and again on game forums make me wonder why companies allow buy-in beta participation (without NDA's) in the first place.

 

The topic specifically asked what people thought of the beta and people are being honest. That doesn't mean they didn't expect some things to be that bad. Some stuff is really bad, maybe that's to be expected in a beta but there's no point beating around the bush about it

 

 

I get that...  But someone has already implied that, based on what they see in this beta, they want their money back.  There's a difference between 'thoughts' and 'judgment'.  There will always be folks who are disappointed, but c'mon... 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

From what I can read and see, the Beta is indeed full of bugs, BUT, on the other hand, I must show Obisidian some respect: I am pretty sure they knew what a buggy mess the beta is, and releasing it the way they did actually deserves some respect.

And, at least for me, it shows they do believe in their product; they are certain they will be able to hammer things out till December.

 

Just think of Divinity: OS and its BETA-status...it was a disaster, yet the game was pretty sweet on release.

Well said, Bugs et all I enjoy playing this far more than I did the original Divinity beta release.

 

 

I agree with Karkarov here, and C2B's post on the front page.  The game is very pretty, the spell effects are pretty cool, the writing is solid for an optional area, reputation system is intriguing, and many of the classes are very unique feeling (and fun to play).  The game is in beta and as such has many technical and balance issues (which is what Obsidian is using the beta to try to remedy). 

 

The issues most discussed atm (bugs not included) are the Attribute system (which Obsidian is already looking into), how XP is handed out, class balance (not being discussed, but it is apparent to me as I have played the Chanter lol), combat responsiveness (Pathfinding, autoattack, knowing what is doing what etc), and a few other odds and ends.  The game is fun to play regardless of these things. 

 

I feel better about this game being a Spiritual Successor to the IE games than I did when I finished my first playthrough of DA:  O.  That is probably something that could stir a debate, but it does have more in common with the IE games than DA:  O did.  Things like Monster Variety, Number of Classes, 6 party members, spells and abilities are more similar to IE games (no MMO tank mechanics:  THANK GOD), and a few other things all make me feel this way.  However, others could very likely disagree. 

 

On the note of classes:  I really like the classes Obsidian has laid out.  Of note, the Monk, Chanter, and Cipher are all fun because of their resource mechanics.  The Druid is versatile and fun...  the Pally, fighter, Barbarian, rogue, wizard, and Priest are what I would expect at level 5 (which is good), and the Ranger is the buggiest but shows great promise.  My one issue here is the lack of Talents/Feats to help diversify you build further, but we knew the beta would be limited on feats. 

 

I have videos coming to showcase the classes at level 5 if anyone is interested.  Some classes get more coverage than others (Some classes would require me to do multiple characters to show all their abilities since they get spells like a Sorcerer in the IE games and I don't have the time to edit it appropriately) but I at least cover the basics and show their uniqueness as best as I can.  I am basically just winging a single recording though, and it is far from professional. 

Edited by Ganrich
  • Like 5
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Practically unplayable. I couldn't get to the ogre because one of my characters would get stuck in place indefinitely for some obscure reason. My PC would suddenly get stats boosted by like 10000% and become unkillable. Combat feels unresponsive and basic party AI doesn't work well. This is all bugs, not design flaws, so it's still going to be awesome. Graphics are pretty much all that one could have hoped for and the UI (once polished) should be among the best if not the best I'll ever have seen in an RPG.

 

If I had more time I could explore a bit more but there are such major issues at this point that I feel like waiting for the next build to retry it.

Edited by Zeckul
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm experiencing bugs here and there but lately I haven't seen many of them actually, been having much fun and are looking more and more forward to the real deal. Had a long session today with my ranger and had some amazing fights, and these quests are addictive. Will be interesting to see what the first beta update fixes though. One thing I haven't been able to do is add more members to my party because of a bug with the Inn but haven't really needed more party members. I'm really happy that I bought beta access.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm very relieved by the Beta, honestly. In terms of aesthetic, combat, and dialogue, PoE truly has all of the trappings to succeed the Infinity Engine Games.

 

Aesthetics

 

Environments are lush and beautiful. Dynamic vegetation would be a serious enhancement, but the areas do not suffer tremendously whilst they are static. Dungeons could serve to be significantly darker, but are otherwise attractive. Even still, exploration is a joy in these beautiful areas. The music is worthy, but nothing particularly note-worthy. I like the realistic art style very much, and it is a welcome respite from 9 foot WoW shoulder plates and the like. Character and monster models do need more definition though. They blend in with the background a fair amount.

 

User Interface

 

Clean and efficient for the most part. Inventory is straightforward, and evokes memories from D&D gold-box games. Inventory does feel somewhat limited, this is particularly true when one bother to pick up the plethora of crafting materials strewn about the game. Thus far, I have three major complains with the UI. Statuses on characters are not readily clear. Grimiore access is inefficient. Most importantly, the dialogue/combat feedback window is much too small, and its text is far too large.

 

Classes & Attributes

 

Classes are varied and distinctive. The selection of spells and abilities are worthwhile, and most all of them feel useful and effective. Classes do have an incomplete feeling, with many of them not having new abilities or talents to select when leveling up. What is available to select feels somewhat arbitrary. Attributes will require tweaking, and in some cases redefining, but nothing catastrophic. They serve their purposes for the most part, and I have yet to build a truly inferior character.

 

General Game play & Combat

 

Combat is tactical and complex. There are numerous abilities to take into account, and strategy is significant. Combat can easily become cluttered though, and formation doesn't have as much bearing as it should. Even with the engagement system, enemies can still readily access more vulnerable classes. Combat often has a tangled feel, and can significantly hamper spell use. On that note, spell are varied, useful, and satisfying, but can be difficult to target. While some people are overwhelmed by the per encounter choices, I find them refreshing. If anything, I feel the per-encounter abilities for caster classes should be expanded. This is largely because combat is very frequent, lethal, and in many cases unavoidable.

 

Dialogue is efficient and allows many different options. Conversations are Torment quality in choice and description with greater concision. I expect a great deal of reactivity to come from a player's dialogue choices. I have encountered some of the "storybook interaction scenes". They are seamlessly woven into the game play, and feel superb. Quest resolution feels varied, and allows for multiple solutions. The degree at which I investigate and discuss is about equivalent to the amount of fighting I employ to complete quests. Ample latitude is provided for either recourse.

 

Resting feels appropriate, though camping supplies are quite expensive. The player is given incentive to make regular trips back to town for health, spell renewal, and limited inventory space. I have not engaged in crafting yet, but it appears to be a major feature of the game. Crafting items are extremely common, and compose about 85% of the items that you will find.

 

Bugs

 

There are numerous bugs, but I haven't encountered anything that has broken the game or caused crashing. The only severe bugs I have encountered are with the inventory, which is being vigorously addressed. I will occasionally get other erroneous bugs, but nothing reproducible just yet. Otherwise, it's typically just minor graphical errors and lack of optimization. I have participated in other betas before, and PoE feels consistent with their degrees of errors.

 

Conclusion

 

I'm fairly satisfied with the game thus far. Much of what I was reading from other members gave me immense worry, but after playing the beta myself--I am reassured. There is still a great deal of work to do, but everything is in place to be what we have expected to come from PoE. If they can finish fleshing everything out, it's going to be an excellent game.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Some quick impressions:

 

- Graphics are gorgeous but the spell effects could be better

- Characted models, and particularly faces, are a bit ugly and featureless

- Characters need better contrast - they blend into the background quite a lot and are difficult to distinguish

- Combat is chaotic - I can't figure out what is going on - need better prompts. Right now, I feel I have little control over what's happening

- All the popup ballons and text should be smoother and better made - the stats popup for enemies takes half the screen! There should also be an option to turn off the health dots and stamina bars in combat

- Need more combat anymations!! Characters only swing one way

- Dialogue bar is too small even with reduced fonts - I'd suggest moving it in the center of the screen and making it wider, while have the party commands on the right

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Further impressions.

 

The game is easy.

 

Yes, really. It is.

 

Its main problem right now, apart from the high-impact bugs, is the lack of feedback in combat. It is hard to tell what's going on because it only appears in the fast-scrolling combat log, and visual feedback is poor. That means that you have to actually know what the system does and trust it to do what it's supposed to do. If you don't and, say, put a low Resolve character in the front line, you'll be wondering why he isn't doing anything, and won't realize it's because all his actions are getting Interrupted by enemy attacks. This isn't your fault either; it's because there's no indication that he's being interrupted, apart from maybe some animation twitches, which you won't be able to see well anyway unless you're specifically looking for them.

 

There's a good deal of discussion about this already, and I'm pretty confident they'll be addressed.

 

The more I play this, the better I like it. The difference between playing it well and playing it badly is huge. You can't just select-all and auto-attack the nearest enemy and hope to win, even on Easy. If instead you cast an area buff, march your fighter forward to pin them, and cast a damaging area debuff with your wizard, then they will fold in a round or two, without you taking a scratch. It's immensely satisfying... or would be, if it wasn't like walking on eggshells in order to avoid triggering a bug that ruins your day.

 

I'm really eager for the next build, which will presumably have some of the worst offenders sorted.

  • Like 4

I have a project. It's a tabletop RPG. It's free. It's a work in progress. Find it here: www.brikoleur.com

Link to comment
Share on other sites

- Characted models, and particularly faces, are a bit ugly and featureless

Personally I think they're ugly in a good way. Generic or animesque "pretty" faces we see almost in every RPG these days are starting to make me seriously sick. Enough is enough. Facial features are always a nice touch but I'm not sure the effort would be justified in a 2.5D game. There are character portraits for that.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have videos coming to showcase the classes at level 5 if anyone is interested.  Some classes get more coverage than others (Some classes would require me to do multiple characters to show all their abilities since they get spells like a Sorcerer in the IE games and I don't have the time to edit it appropriately) but I at least cover the basics and show their uniqueness as best as I can.  I am basically just winging a single recording though, and it is far from professional. 

 

Where can I see your videos?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...