How Good is this Game? Old rpg gamers only!

[brisingr90]

So, as an RPG lovers, I want to ask, how good is this game? my opinions on what "good" games are like Baldur's gate, NWN, Dungeon Siege and Dragon Age origin. Comparing this game with those four, is this game as good as them, lesser, or even better?

 

I asked because, from what I see in youtube, this game is a slow paced game, too much strategy (pause) like Divinity Original Sin, am I correct?

 

 

[demeisen]

So, as an RPG lovers, I want to ask, how good is this game? my opinions on what "good" games are like Baldur's gate, NWN, Dungeon Siege and Dragon Age origin. Comparing this game with those four, is this game as good as them, lesser, or even better?

 

I asked because, from what I see in youtube, this game is a slow paced game, too much strategy (pause) like Divinity Original Sin, am I correct?

 

BG, NWN, and DA:O are new games, not old ones!  The oldest is what, 1998?

 

Anyway, NWN is a really mixed bag to compare, because of add-on modules, some of which were really great.  If you ignore that angle and just consider the original game itself, my preference order from best to worst would be:

 

BG2 > POE > NWN > DA:O > DS.

 

If you include the best NWN modules, then swap NWN and POE.

 

You don't have to pause POE if you don't want: there's a slow combat mode where you can try it in real time.  On some of the harder fights you might want to though.

[Luckmann]

It's pretty alright.

[Tigranes]

If you like Dungeon Siege, I don't think I can estimate anything about whether you'd enjoy it. 

 

Ironically, it was one of the slowest paced game of all time, because you literally didn't have to do anything once combat started.

[Dadalama]

It's no Ultima 4 but it's a great IE like. I also really like the world.

[petrivanzyl]

BG2 > PoE > BG

[Nakia]

My opinion as a graduate of the IE games is that this game is at least just as good.  It is not a clone of any of those games and there are differences.  If by slow paced you mean it is not a game to be rushed through that is true.  There are plenty of side quests and exploration.  I do not find it a slow game because you are constantly doing quests and exploring.  You need to get you levels up in order to fight those bosses which get progressively harder in my opinion.

 

Personally I consider it better than the BG games and it has touches of IWD I and II.  It is as good as Planescape/Torment which I loved.

 

I love this game and am very happy with it. I play on normal difficulty with Expert Mode.

[mazeltov]

Solid 7/10. Nowhere near as good as DA:O, though. About on par with their NWN2 work, imo, except that PoE's stats/afflictions are worse than trusty 3.5 rules, and prerendered backgrounds make PoE far more visually appealing.

[Slapstick87]

I've played a lifetime of NWN due to all of it's modules and persistant worlds and stuff. Ahh, good times. I'm not sure if this will hold up as well over time (fingers crossed though!), but considering only the core game? Yes PoE is better than NWN. I'd pretty much lump this in with all the great ones, BG 1+2, NWN, DA:O, PoE - all good games. Some are better in certain areas than the other games, but they're all very much worth every dollar and every minute of playtime. 

[Godless]

It doesn't outdo them, but it's a solid game in its own right. As a guy who has played Dnd & Dnd based games since I was a wee child, I can attest that it (currently) is not as good as BG2, IWD, or IWD 2, and it has about as much content BG without ToTSC. That being said, the new systems implemented are definitely refreshing and I think if it progresses in quality and diversity as much as Dnd has, it will definitely be just as solid if not better.

[LegioCorvus]

I put it on par with the original Baldur's Gate.  There's some good stuff, and there's stuff that needs some work.  It gives a lot of hope for a sequel. 

 

The combat is almost directly lifted from the Baldur's Gate series, all the way down to the sometimes frustrating pathing. 

[andrewjknox]

I'll classify myself as "old" as a 37 year old who played all BG1+2, Torment and Icewind Dale at the time they came out.

 

Love this. In fact, I just finished it 5 minutes ago clocking up just under 60 hours. Not finished a game in at least a decade. Looking forward to the next instalment.

[Kefky]

It's way too bugged to be enjoyable, like most Obsidian games. I thought they'd have fixed most bugs by now, but I keep encountering new ones everyday, and big ones, like my inventory disappearing or freezes. I wouldn't buy it if I were you. Maybe in a year when it's cheaper and most of the bugs are fixed (or not).

[Slapstick87]

It's way too bugged to be enjoyable, like most Obsidian games. I thought they'd have fixed most bugs by now, but I keep encountering new ones everyday, and big ones, like my inventory disappearing or freezes. I wouldn't buy it if I were you. Maybe in a year when it's cheaper and most of the bugs are fixed (or not).

 

Really? I've put in a good 140 hours and still haven't encountered a single bug. Not one. As in 0. 

Maybe I'm just really lucky.

[Blovski]

It's grand. I mean, it's not perfect but it's its own thing and often very good at being it.

Baldur's Gate is the only one of those I might suggest is better than PoE but even then there are a lot of areas where PoE wins out and I suspect I'm kinder to BG because there's the sequel to go to once you're done with it. DA:O had some great reactivity stuff but never burrowed in my heart very much. NWN I did not like one bit. Well, maybe one bit but I think there's some really terrible ideas in it. DS is an interesting one. I mean, the technical side is really impressive but a lot of the gameplay's very counterintuitive. I think you probably need to pause less in PoE than in Baldur's Gate.

Edit: ^^ I've encountered a couple of bugs. Nothing gamebreaking. It's probably less bug-prone than DA:O, which suffered a lot of crashes for me. The asylum quest chain one, which I think has been patched out, one with Ranger's Bonded Grief not going away until you've finished an actual fight if you knock out the AC out of combat (but that's an edge case thing where you're, say, testing Spellstrike weapons on your own party out of curiosity and maybe not a good example).

Edited April 24, 2015 by Blovski

[Anaeme]

It's way too bugged to be enjoyable, like most Obsidian games. I thought they'd have fixed most bugs by now, but I keep encountering new ones everyday, and big ones, like my inventory disappearing or freezes. I wouldn't buy it if I were you. Maybe in a year when it's cheaper and most of the bugs are fixed (or not).

 

Not sure what you are talking about

 

I am playing it now and not sufferring from bugs

[constantine]

From a veteran and huge fan of the D&D ie games and the original Fallouts (i've also played DA:O, which i've found decent, and D:OS which i didn't like at all):

 

PoE is a great game. The campaign will draw you in right from the beginning, the atmosphere, music strike the right note.

 

The story manages to make you involved, much like the BG games. It has the element of mystery that makes you carry on.

 

The classes are better than d&d 2nd and feel much more different playing each. Magic abilities are divided between the casters, no wizard can do every spell. Magic system is inferior to d&d, but still very interesting.

 

Companions are good- some are fun, some quite mysterious, but not as good as BG2 or DA:O. However, they are very likeable and make you want to see more of them, possibly in PoE2.

 

Combat is very different from ie games, but really good in its own way- tactical, punishing to the unwise and.. faster !

 

To sum it up, although inspired from the legendary old games, PoE has its own identity, which is its greatest achievement. It is an instant classic.

[Kefky]

 

It's way too bugged to be enjoyable, like most Obsidian games. I thought they'd have fixed most bugs by now, but I keep encountering new ones everyday, and big ones, like my inventory disappearing or freezes. I wouldn't buy it if I were you. Maybe in a year when it's cheaper and most of the bugs are fixed (or not).

 

Not sure what you are talking about

 

I am playing it now and not sufferring from bugs

 

 

When you dismiss a companion to put another one in the party and then rest, all of their items are gone. This was reported when the game came out and it hasn't been fixed yet. I didn't know and lost half of my inventory, including 3 figurines which were very expensive and helpful in tough Path of the Damned encounters. There's also a NPC that freezes the game when I talk to him, among other things.

[View619]

Better than vanilla BG1, better story and overall balance than D:OS, falls below BG2 but the core game shows a lot of promise. The expansion or POE2 could put it on the level of BG2.

 

I need to get around to finishing PS:T myself, maybe this weekend.

[communard]

It is excellent. Some parts are frustrating, some parts make you smile, some punch you in the gut. In terms of story, way better than most RPGs save maybe Planescape. There are actually, you know, themes and stuff. It is a little unbalanced and some stuff leaves you a bit unsatisfied (Stronghold upgrades in particular), but that is true of any game. It almost wouldn't be as fun if there was nothing to gripe about! Currently it is on par with at least BG1, and I'm talking about BG1 after 10 years of expansions, patches and modding. In the future? I have high hopes for this game and its sequels/expansions.

Edited April 24, 2015 by communard

[Nakia]

It's way too bugged to be enjoyable, like most Obsidian games. I thought they'd have fixed most bugs by now, but I keep encountering new ones everyday, and big ones, like my inventory disappearing or freezes. I wouldn't buy it if I were you. Maybe in a year when it's cheaper and most of the bugs are fixed (or not).

I started playing as soon as it was released on Steam and did encounter a few minor bugs but nothing major.  Maybe I too am just lucky but for me this is one of the most bug free games I have played in recent years.  Ah wait there are the beetles and the spiders.  :D

[rjshae]

I quite enjoyed playing it, as much as anything I've played recently.

 

To me, many of the complaints I've read are overblown. They just didn't match my experience.

 

Could it be improved? Certainly. There are many little details that could be incrementally polished up or expanded upon. I'm hoping they work on enhancing the experience with the expansion set.

Edited April 24, 2015 by rjshae

[Tuckey]

Oddly enough Pillars reminds me of Dungeon Siege. Maybe its the wizard spell books and the interchangeable spells which operate like Dungeon Siege 1 and 2. Or maybe its the real time with pause combat and the getting up after losing health (once enemies defeated or have wandered away). One notable difference is you need to rest to get spells back.

 

If you were to add more classic rpg elements to Dungeon Siege it would turn into Pillars I reckon. Its even got a better stash mechanic in the form of donkeys.

[Volourn]

Soiid fun RPG with plenty of noticeable and inexcuseable flaws that stops it from being amongst the 'best of the best'.

[CriticalFailure]

NWN is a special case because of the insane amount of custom modules and content in general, so it doesn't compare, IMO. If we're talking about the original campaign only, I prefer PoE.

 

Personally, I'd put it one step below the Baldur's Gates and DAO (maybe up there with BG1), but it's still a very solid game and the best RPG I've played in the last few years (though I haven't really tried many new ones). It's not without issues, but I definitely recommend it. Just don't go expecting it to be better than X and enjoy it for what it is.

Edited April 24, 2015 by CriticalFailure