IE Veteran's feedback

[Athrogate]

When I backed this game $140 it was because I was being told it would be like the old IE games. I was sold.

PoE is very similar in its design of areas, zones, quests and so on. I think Obsidian did a great job here. I'd like to point out that I think the music is outstanding in this game. Obsidian basically did exactly what they told me they would do. That is, for the things mentioned.

 

Somehow, at one point in time, someone obviously decided to break that promise. Instead of a similar experience to the old IE games, especially BG1+2 - Obsidian decides to totally redo combat. Let's just look at what BG1+2 combat was:

Quite challenging tactical combat. The combat felt such a way that if you used certain spells you had a huge tactical advantage. For instance "blind" early one really helped with some nasty ogres in the beginning.

Later on, combat was still very tactical, with prebuffing + summoning monsters and then engagement. It is to this date, some of the most fun fights I've had. Combat involved moving characters around alot, tanking, moving mages out, letting your rogue stand behind and get some backstabs etc. All this while the enemy did lots of nasty stuff. What I remember the most is that certain enemies could only be killed with certain spells and you needed solid strategies for alot of the encounters. Knowledge was power.

 

I ask you Obsidian; Why did you change every aspect of combat that I liked about the old IE D&D games? 

Instead of trying to make a similar system, you have made Pillars of Restraints. Camp supply restraint, prebuffing restraint, movement in combat retraint, feeling powerful restraint. The thing is, I feel that PoE is alot less tactical. It's just the same, every level. I don't even understand what the supply limit is for. Should I keep myself in check and not go and restock? Why can we not summon monsters and buff our team before combat? It feels as everything is done in order to meet a system which is only half done. You could remove all these redundant and annoying factors and instead make the encounters more challenging. What do I need to cast, how can I win this etc. Right now, it's a macro game. How long can I go before my HP is 1 and I need to restock my camp supplies. I'm very sad and serious when I say: it's not very fun. At least not compared to 10 + year old games based on D&D. 

 

My hope is that more than me feels dissapointed by the combat system and that we will see some drastic changes in future / next games. I mean, I loved the world, just not the combat. 

Edited March 30, 2015 by Athrogate

[Jimmious]

I disagree with you in 2 out of the 3 points you make.

1) Camp supply restraint offers tactical thought on how to approach each fight. You don't go spells blazing in each fight, you must think which ones you consider easier and avoid using all your spells/abilities in them. I like this approach.

2) Prebuffing, I agree with. Although you can actually have some sort of prebuffing with food and resting. However it is a battle design that was intentional and doesn't bother me too much.

3) Movement restraint. There is no such thing. There is the equivalent of Attacks of Opportunity and I find that very reasonable. Plus you have a lot of abilities to bypass it.

[broknight]

When I backed this game $140 it was because I was being told it would be like the old IE games. I was sold.

PoE is very similar in its design of areas, zones, quests and so on. I think Obsidian did a great job here. I'd like to point out that I think the music is outstanding in this game. Obsidian basically did exactly what they told me they would do. That is, for the things mentioned.

 

Somehow, at one point in time, someone obviously decided to break that promise. Instead of a similar experience to the old IE games, especially BG1+2 - Obsidian decides to totally redo combat. Let's just look at what BG1+2 combat was:

Quite challenging tactical combat. The combat felt such a way that if you used certain spells you had a huge tactical advantage. For instance "blind" early one really helped with some nasty ogres in the beginning.

Later on, combat was still very tactical, with prebuffing + summoning monsters and then engagement. It is to this date, some of the most fun fights I've had. Combat involved moving characters around alot, tanking, moving mages out, letting your rogue stand behind and get some backstabs etc. All this while the enemy did lots of nasty stuff. What I remember the most is that certain enemies could only be killed with certain spells and you needed solid strategies for alot of the encounters. Knowledge was power.

 

I ask you Obsidian; Why did you change every aspect of combat that I liked about the old IE D&D games? 

Instead of trying to make a similar system, you have made Pillars of Restraints. Camp supply restraint, prebuffing restraint, movement in combat retraint, feeling powerful restraint. The thing is, I feel that PoE is alot less tactical. It's just the same, every level. I don't even understand what the supply limit is for. Should I keep myself in check and not go and restock? Why can we not summon monsters and buff our team before combat? It feels as everything is done in order to meet a system which is only half done. You could remove all these redundant and annoying factors and instead make the encounters more challenging. What do I need to cast, how can I win this etc. Right now, it's a macro game. How long can I go before my HP is 1 and I need to restock my camp supplies. I'm very sad and serious when I say: it's not very fun. At least not compared to 10 + year old games based on D&D. 

 

My hope is that more than me feels dissapointed by the combat system and that we will see some drastic changes in future / next games. I mean, I loved the world, just not the combat. 

I'm of the same opinion. No prebuffing or casting of spells kills the immersion. The limit on camp supplies just forces you to hobble back to the nearest inn.  It just becomes busywork imho.The food buffs are basically the drug use in Fallout. Some people may like the challenge of managing resources but it kills a lot of the fun, this should be optional. Aggro is messed up and some monsters just teleport to disengage my melee guys which makes some of the encounters artificial/contrived becuz they just immediately go for my spellcasters. 

[TheisEjsing]

I feel you. Those 140$ really gives you the right to feel butthurt! They should have made the game you wanted right?
Facts are that they promised 3 things. Exploration, six man party, and tactical combat. They delivered that.. and then some. I'm an IE veteran aswell mind you, but it's time to put away the rose tinted glasses, and accept that BG 2, as great as it was, was not perfect. Prebuffing, feeling powerful, and kiting without consequence is not tactical, it's the opposite. With prebuffing you don't have to think about what you need to cast for the fight, just cast everything. The argument you use for prebuffing is the reason for no prebuffing. The rest mechanic should be self-explanatory to an IE veteran. 

Edited March 30, 2015 by TheisEjsing

[Killyox]

When I backed this game $140 it was because I was being told it would be like the old IE games. I was sold.

PoE is very similar in its design of areas, zones, quests and so on. I think Obsidian did a great job here. I'd like to point out that I think the music is outstanding in this game. Obsidian basically did exactly what they told me they would do. That is, for the things mentioned.

 

Somehow, at one point in time, someone obviously decided to break that promise. Instead of a similar experience to the old IE games, especially BG1+2 - Obsidian decides to totally redo combat. Let's just look at what BG1+2 combat was:

Quite challenging tactical combat. The combat felt such a way that if you used certain spells you had a huge tactical advantage. For instance "blind" early one really helped with some nasty ogres in the beginning.

Later on, combat was still very tactical, with prebuffing + summoning monsters and then engagement. It is to this date, some of the most fun fights I've had. Combat involved moving characters around alot, tanking, moving mages out, letting your rogue stand behind and get some backstabs etc. All this while the enemy did lots of nasty stuff. What I remember the most is that certain enemies could only be killed with certain spells and you needed solid strategies for alot of the encounters. Knowledge was power.

 

I ask you Obsidian; Why did you change every aspect of combat that I liked about the old IE D&D games? 

Instead of trying to make a similar system, you have made Pillars of Restraints. Camp supply restraint, prebuffing restraint, movement in combat retraint, feeling powerful restraint. The thing is, I feel that PoE is alot less tactical. It's just the same, every level. I don't even understand what the supply limit is for. Should I keep myself in check and not go and restock? Why can we not summon monsters and buff our team before combat? It feels as everything is done in order to meet a system which is only half done. You could remove all these redundant and annoying factors and instead make the encounters more challenging. What do I need to cast, how can I win this etc. Right now, it's a macro game. How long can I go before my HP is 1 and I need to restock my camp supplies. I'm very sad and serious when I say: it's not very fun. At least not compared to 10 + year old games based on D&D. 

 

My hope is that more than me feels dissapointed by the combat system and that we will see some drastic changes in future / next games. I mean, I loved the world, just not the combat. 

So because you think they broke their promise it means that's a fact? I disagree. I feel it is very inspired by IE games which is exactly what they said they would do. Also they can;t copy&paste mechanics that they have no intelectual propety of so it was obvious combat will be different.

 

Combat system is OK. It just need better AI and balancing of spells and monster abilities. I also think engagement hurts the game overall. I don't have problem with it but it's very artificial limitation that seems to actually favour the player.

[Monte Carlo]

To the OP - one word. Sawyer. He doesn't really like the pre-cursor games. He thought he could do better. He talks about stuff like 'Gamism' (I know). He's a clever guy, he knows what he wants to achieve but he sometimes comes across as Doctor Spock when it comes to systems.

 

* shrugs *

 

To be fair this was very clear during the dev phase but if you go simply by the PR fluff you can see why some people have been ambushed by the obtuse reality behind PoEs mechanics.

[Aramintai]

Later on, combat was still very tactical, with prebuffing + summoning monsters and then engagement. It is to this date, some of the most fun fights I've had. Combat involved moving characters around alot, tanking, moving mages out, letting your rogue stand behind and get some backstabs etc. All this while the enemy did lots of nasty stuff. What I remember the most is that certain enemies could only be killed with certain spells and you needed solid strategies for alot of the encounters. Knowledge was power.

 

 

Yea, prebuffing and getting to know your enemy weaknesses and how to overcome them was very fun in BG. I still remember how intently I've studied what debuff spells would work on some super tough bosses like Firkraag (if you play you cards right you can actually kill him with 1-st level spell, lol) and Kangaxx. Combat in PoE is very bland in comparison, general strategy - put tank upfront and make everyone else spam whatever ranged attacks\spells they have, most of them will do. And even with good gear and high levels I still feel underpowered in some combat situations, probably because the game still needs some rebalancing.

Edited March 30, 2015 by Aramintai

[Quantics]

It was clear from the start that the game wouldn't have a D&D license, so I don't understand how you could expect it to have D&D combat. 

 

I was really skeptical about combat after trying out the Backer Beta, but I'm actually quite enjoying it now. And much to my surprise, even engagement is not as annoying as I thought it would be (still think it's unnecessary though).

 

Visual clutter during combat, though, is really problematic IMO. 

Edited March 30, 2015 by Quantics

[Monte Carlo]

 

Later on, combat was still very tactical, with prebuffing + summoning monsters and then engagement. It is to this date, some of the most fun fights I've had. Combat involved moving characters around alot, tanking, moving mages out, letting your rogue stand behind and get some backstabs etc. All this while the enemy did lots of nasty stuff. What I remember the most is that certain enemies could only be killed with certain spells and you needed solid strategies for alot of the encounters. Knowledge was power.

 

 

Yea, prebuffing and getting to know your enemy weaknesses and how to overcome them was very fun in BG. Combat in PoE is very bland in comparison, general strategy - put tank upfront and make everyone else spam whatever ranged attacks\spells they have, most of them will do. And even with good gear and high levels I still feel underpowered in some combat situations, probably because the game still needs some rebalancing.

 

 

you know a horde of fan-persons are about to show up and explain why you are wrong. I agree with you, BTW.

[barakav]

When I backed this game $140 it was because I was being told it would be like the old IE games. I was sold.

PoE is very similar in its design of areas, zones, quests and so on. I think Obsidian did a great job here. I'd like to point out that I think the music is outstanding in this game. Obsidian basically did exactly what they told me they would do. That is, for the things mentioned.

 

Somehow, at one point in time, someone obviously decided to break that promise. Instead of a similar experience to the old IE games, especially BG1+2 - Obsidian decides to totally redo combat. Let's just look at what BG1+2 combat was:

Quite challenging tactical combat. The combat felt such a way that if you used certain spells you had a huge tactical advantage. For instance "blind" early one really helped with some nasty ogres in the beginning.

Later on, combat was still very tactical, with prebuffing + summoning monsters and then engagement. It is to this date, some of the most fun fights I've had. Combat involved moving characters around alot, tanking, moving mages out, letting your rogue stand behind and get some backstabs etc. All this while the enemy did lots of nasty stuff. What I remember the most is that certain enemies could only be killed with certain spells and you needed solid strategies for alot of the encounters. Knowledge was power.

 

I ask you Obsidian; Why did you change every aspect of combat that I liked about the old IE D&D games? 

Instead of trying to make a similar system, you have made Pillars of Restraints. Camp supply restraint, prebuffing restraint, movement in combat retraint, feeling powerful restraint. The thing is, I feel that PoE is alot less tactical. It's just the same, every level. I don't even understand what the supply limit is for. Should I keep myself in check and not go and restock? Why can we not summon monsters and buff our team before combat? It feels as everything is done in order to meet a system which is only half done. You could remove all these redundant and annoying factors and instead make the encounters more challenging. What do I need to cast, how can I win this etc. Right now, it's a macro game. How long can I go before my HP is 1 and I need to restock my camp supplies. I'm very sad and serious when I say: it's not very fun. At least not compared to 10 + year old games based on D&D. 

 

My hope is that more than me feels dissapointed by the combat system and that we will see some drastic changes in future / next games. I mean, I loved the world, just not the combat. 

I do agree with you about large portion of your post: the combat in POE is much less dynamic and I don't like it. This is mostly because of the ****ty engagement system .

 

I also miss the epic battles of BG 2, chaotic commands, resist fear then pierce magic/breach/lower resistance/remove magick and just then you could attack effectively with all sorts of different strategies...

 

Alas the combat in this game is still fun. Not amazing but fun...

Edited March 30, 2015 by barakav

[Aramintai]

 

 

Later on, combat was still very tactical, with prebuffing + summoning monsters and then engagement. It is to this date, some of the most fun fights I've had. Combat involved moving characters around alot, tanking, moving mages out, letting your rogue stand behind and get some backstabs etc. All this while the enemy did lots of nasty stuff. What I remember the most is that certain enemies could only be killed with certain spells and you needed solid strategies for alot of the encounters. Knowledge was power.

 

 

Yea, prebuffing and getting to know your enemy weaknesses and how to overcome them was very fun in BG. Combat in PoE is very bland in comparison, general strategy - put tank upfront and make everyone else spam whatever ranged attacks\spells they have, most of them will do. And even with good gear and high levels I still feel underpowered in some combat situations, probably because the game still needs some rebalancing.

 

 

you know a horde of fan-persons are about to show up and explain why you are wrong. I agree with you, BTW.

 

I don't care, combat in PoE is dissapointing and I will stand by this verdict. Maybe it would have been better if it was turn based like Temple of Elemental Evil, I get that vibe frequently when I play PoE - it's almost begging to be turn based. Hopwefully combat in Torment: Tides of Numenera will show Obsidian how it's done.

[Athrogate]

If anyone feels that the combat system is the best thing ever, then I'm happy for you. I just need to let my voice be heard, cause I was hardly enjoying combat in PoE:(

[Vi.king]

When I backed this game $140 it was because I was being told it would be like the old IE games. I was sold.

PoE is very similar in its design of areas, zones, quests and so on. I think Obsidian did a great job here. I'd like to point out that I think the music is outstanding in this game. Obsidian basically did exactly what they told me they would do. That is, for the things mentioned.

 

Somehow, at one point in time, someone obviously decided to break that promise. Instead of a similar experience to the old IE games, especially BG1+2 - Obsidian decides to totally redo combat. Let's just look at what BG1+2 combat was:

Quite challenging tactical combat. The combat felt such a way that if you used certain spells you had a huge tactical advantage. For instance "blind" early one really helped with some nasty ogres in the beginning.

Later on, combat was still very tactical, with prebuffing + summoning monsters and then engagement. It is to this date, some of the most fun fights I've had. Combat involved moving characters around alot, tanking, moving mages out, letting your rogue stand behind and get some backstabs etc. All this while the enemy did lots of nasty stuff. What I remember the most is that certain enemies could only be killed with certain spells and you needed solid strategies for alot of the encounters. Knowledge was power.

 

I ask you Obsidian; Why did you change every aspect of combat that I liked about the old IE D&D games?

Instead of trying to make a similar system, you have made Pillars of Restraints. Camp supply restraint, prebuffing restraint, movement in combat retraint, feeling powerful restraint. The thing is, I feel that PoE is alot less tactical. It's just the same, every level. I don't even understand what the supply limit is for. Should I keep myself in check and not go and restock? Why can we not summon monsters and buff our team before combat? It feels as everything is done in order to meet a system which is only half done. You could remove all these redundant and annoying factors and instead make the encounters more challenging. What do I need to cast, how can I win this etc. Right now, it's a macro game. How long can I go before my HP is 1 and I need to restock my camp supplies. I'm very sad and serious when I say: it's not very fun. At least not compared to 10 + year old games based on D&D.

 

My hope is that more than me feels dissapointed by the combat system and that we will see some drastic changes in future / next games. I mean, I loved the world, just not the combat.

A lot less tactical? How is spamming rest after every single fight in BG tactical? non-magic user classes in BG were basically just rightclicker without any much abilities to do unlike in PoE were you´ve got a lot more abilities. Especially because you have classes like cipher who has ressource based abilities, and per encounter based abilities. As much as I loved BG2 I already like PoE much much more.

[Hiro Protagonist II]

Combat is still too fast. You don't need enemies doing a Usain Bolt across the screen to get to you. Spell effects could get toned down a bit more too.

[Jimmious]

I dont think there is a combat system that is "the best thing ever". And of course the BG games had the immense advantage of using Core Rules which have combat systems that are tested thoroughly through time. PoE had to create something new, it's not perfect but quite good I'd say. But yeah turn based would be better (but I generally like turn based RPGs more than anything else anyway )

[Athrogate]

 

I do agree with you about large portion of your post: the combat in POE is much less dynamic and I don't like it. This is mostly because of the ****ty engagement system .

 

I also miss the epic battles of BG 2, chaotic commands, resist fear then pierce magic/breach/lower resistance/remove magick and just then you could attack effectively with all sorts of different strategies...

 

Alas the combat in this game is still fun. Not amazing but fun...

 

To be honest, I turned it off, and I slept with unlimited camp supplies. It did not help that much. The short range of spells, no precast before combat... You know, I had alot of fun toasting ogres with fireballs in BG. Or stealthing in with my rogue and one shotting the mage before combat began. I know this is not BG and it's pointless to say that we need BG, but this is so far from it. They basically went in the opposite direction.

Edited March 30, 2015 by Athrogate

[Tartantyco]

You know you can still cast offensive spells to initiate combat, right?

[SeekDWay]

 

I don't care, combat in PoE is dissapointing and I will stand by this verdict. Maybe it would have been better if it was turn based like Temple of Elemental Evil, I get that vibe frequently when I play PoE - it's almost begging to be turn based. Hopwefully combat in Torment: Tides of Numenera will show Obsidian how it's done.

 

This I've been saying this to all my firends that backed the game. The game mechancis are fine, but simply do not work with the so called real time combat (engagement).

 

The game is awesome, combat is crap, combat in BG2 was crap in a different way, but still felt better, if you were a spellcaster... The expectations for this game were too high, they had to mix up too much stuff and the end mix got a tad bit too much of a Sawyer. I respect him a lot, but I feel they went too far with all the chains the game pulls on you and your enemies (hoping for Eternity Unchained :D).

Hard difficulty is on par with a crappy time sink, but I expect that in every single game.

 

The combat could be better, if engagement wasn't there in it's current state(or at all?) and if the endurance pools of most characters weren't this abyssmal.

 

Still my score for the game is 85/100.

Edited March 30, 2015 by SeekDWay

[Ashen Rohk]

I for one feel this is a vast improvement over the IE games.

 

I was so sick of pre-buffing etc etc, and then a bum rush when spells ran out before you spam rested. PoE is making me think more tactically than any IE game ever did.

 

Sawyer and his team did a great job with this game. I always say to my other half that if diehard Tolkein fans had made the LOTR movies, they would've been terrible. I think that transfers over here.

 

And if you want to play an IE game...play an IE game.

[Niggey]

I really like the combat system in PoE and after reading many BB's reviews I thought that wouldnt be the case. I really love BG1+2, they are my favourite games so far but for me, Obsidian has done a great job in PoE as well.

 

Granted, there are some flaws like the spamming of the per encounter abilites in every fight can get tedious or that the fights are often to short to use buffs accordingly but overall im reaaally happy.

Mind you that the old IE games are far from perfect, with mages going insane in late game fights, insane amount of backstab damage or enemy mages starting with huge amount of protection spells each fight (I never liked that) as just some examples. It was perfect for IE Veterans because they know how to work with some of the sometimes extrem OP stuff in the game.

They tried some new stuff in PoE which is a good idea overall and some deviation from the IE battle system and not just a 1:1 copy is what I hoped for.

 

The engagement system is okay-ish IMO, I just think A) there need to be more abilities to safely disengage and B) fights need to be last longer to compensate no Pre-Buffing (every character deals less damage maybe). But with 30 hours into the game I cant say I hate the combat

[Ohioastro]

Pre-bufffing was tedious and overpowered in Baldurs Gate.  I'm very glad that it's gone; it basically represented a completely artificial edge for players in encounters, which in turn forced design choices that made parties without pre-buffing grossly underpowered.

 

Not having to stop and do a bunch of mandatory mouse clicks before encounters is an improvement in my book: you can buff in combat, and that is an actual tactical choice (as opposed to a required mechanical task.)  The combat in this game *is* really tactical and challenging.  Having to weigh resting against using all of the spells is a tactical choice.  Positioning matters.  Weapon choice matters.

 

If you just want to play Baldurs Gate over and over again, it's still around.  I'm really enjoying this game, and it's getting rave reviews from users and critics for good reasons.

[Delicieuxz]

I haven't found that having limited camp supplies has made me make scampering trips to and from inns to restock myself. Instead, I've found it makes me make use of every last bit of health I have, and not make wasteful moves in combat. On Hard, with a party of 4, at level 4, I cleared out the entirety of Raedric's keep on only 2 camping supplies. Because I knew I had to make health last, I reloaded battles quite a few times, to change my strategy, but that made me figure the details of my combat direction a lot more, and it made the battles feel more intense, where every decision was counted as valuable.

 

I think I'm in favour of limited camping supplies.

 

The past 10 years of over-simplified gaming has made it clear that when gaming considerations are sacrificed for convenience, it's a slippery slope that leads to gaming homogenization and garbageware - and which had finally lead to people yearning for a return to in-depth gaming. Deeper gaming enjoyment requires the willingness of the player to meet and overcome the challenges put before them, and removing elements of challenge will remove potential for gamer satisfaction.

 

People have thresholds, but I found that when I took into account the camp limit as a reality, it influenced my play style, and my sense of the world and my presence in it, and made it all feel more actual, adding new dimension to my experience.

Edited March 30, 2015 by Delicieuxz

[Awathorn]

After 20-30 hours in game, I kind of agree with OP. 

 

Game looks beautiful, it has a lot of things designed specifically to induce IE nostalgia, music is quite good, VA decent, portraits and general art direction good (with a few exceptions), story is fine (nothing great though) even if the game is full of copy-paste moments from earlier games.

 

All that said - I really don't know what were they thinking with classes, races, combat and other mechanics. It's not terrible, but it certainly isn't good or great. 

 

With the notable exception of cipher, every other class is badly done, half-done or just mediocre. Combat is one big pause-pause-pause cluster****. Wizard spells are boring and for the most part unusable (unless you want to damage your own guys). After all the discussion about engagement system, we have enemies that just ignore that stuff. Uninspiring, half useless talents and abilities (again), unimpressive weapons.

 

On top of all that - PoE has to have one of THE most awful statistics presentation ever. I have no idea what does what, what to compare, what to do. Plus this, minus this, attacks this, of this, of that, adds this, +1, +3%, 19.3 seconds. It's not even presented in the same way always. And people said D&D was weird.  

 

And then, there is stuff that is just annoying. Half-done world, weird language (pwgra), generic names, badly written books (This was... This led to... This...), camping supplies, totally unnecessary fb-games-like-stronghold, helms do nothing, you can wear amulet OR cloak etc.

 

I like the game, but except graphics, there is nothing here that would make it superior or equal to IE or some modern RPGs.

 

It is a playable game, it is a beautiful game, it is a decent story (if a bit cliche) and that's all. 

 

Feels like they were looking more into some other games, instead of... let's say BG. Not counting the visual style, PoE just reeks of some later, less successful, more or less known efforts. 

[PrimeJunta]

I'm not sad about the removal of long-duration prebuffs. The combat-only restrictions on stuff are kinda silly though, and in particular render the wizard's self-defense spells useless due to opportunity cost. I wish they'll change that at some point.

 

Overall I'm digging the combat a lot though.

[Athrogate]

Pre-bufffing was tedious and overpowered in Baldurs Gate.  I'm very glad that it's gone; it basically represented a completely artificial edge for players in encounters, which in turn forced design choices that made parties without pre-buffing grossly underpowered.

 

Not having to stop and do a bunch of mandatory mouse clicks before encounters is an improvement in my book: you can buff in combat, and that is an actual tactical choice (as opposed to a required mechanical task.)  The combat in this game *is* really tactical and challenging.  Having to weigh resting against using all of the spells is a tactical choice.  Positioning matters.  Weapon choice matters.

 

If you just want to play Baldurs Gate over and over again, it's still around.  I'm really enjoying this game, and it's getting rave reviews from users and critics for good reasons.

 

If you find PoE tactically challenging, then good for you.