Pillars of Eternity 2 Wish List and Suggestions

[goodman528]

None of what the OP said.

 

I want the game to be easier, with less combat and less pausing needed in combat, so mostly auto attacking with a couple of hot key abilities should win most combats.

 

I also want most companions in my party with more conversations with companions and between companions.

[Elric Galad]

None of what the OP said.

 

I want the game to be easier, with less combat and less pausing needed in combat, so mostly auto attacking with a couple of hot key abilities should win most combats.

 

 

Isn't it the point of story mode ?

[mosspit]

Well this is my list:

 

1. Better dual or mulit-class system

I applaud the effort to include this aspect in PoE but I would like like more integrated version of this, more than just having a cross-class skill to choose from. Not exactly familiar with D&D rulesets but from my layman's point of view, it will be separate levels for each chosen class. Or other ways to make it do that ties in with level progression.

 

2. The presentation of suppression effects

I am personally alright with effects being suppressed but I would think it could be more clearly presented across. Currently, I am finding myself loading up test saves to try out abilities in mock battles to check if things get suppressed or otherwise.

 

3. More transparent attack speed presentation

Others have explained clearer than I could.

 

Keep from existing:

 

1. Party size of 6

Please don't drop the party size. It is already increasingly difficult to find rpgs that has these kind of party sizes. Maybe other developers want to reduce the micro needed. But some of us appreciate the bigger party size.

 

2. Game modes and difficulty

I really like the fact that there are quite of number of difficulty and toggle-able modes to choose from for the gamer to customize the difficulty suitable for him or her. Personally I am having a blast with Trial of Iron and like the fact that others who detest it can just avoid selecting it in the first pace.

Edited June 25, 2016 by mosspit

[Midas Touch]

A classless character system, like Arcanum!

[Cyseal]

Also, please make a console release of PoE2 at the level of Divinity: OS playability.

[Keldaur]

Suggestion for skills, spells, gameplay  and environment:

[video=youtube;e5FrsBvE2Ik]

That looks like an aRPG...

[Cyseal]

That looks like an aRPG...

 

Yes Lost Ark is aRPG. I meant the environment, skills and particle system. Gameplay is fast but Pillars system uses animation speed modifiers so it can be tweaked per character. Several parameters are controlling speed modifiers. For every  repeatable animation in aRPG you can lower the speed and set up the delay of the animation and get cRPG which has delay rules for the attack.

Edited June 28, 2016 by Cyseal

[Anaeme]

Ninagaut's Grimoire had a ton of spells which I never really had a chance to use.

 

Seemed like a waste

[Mechalibur]

Huh, I didn't realize pathfinding was such a big issues on the game. I have nearly 200 hours logged and have actually never noticed any significant problems with it o_o

 

As for my most requested feature: companions with a backbone! Characters like Eder, Pallagina, and Sagani shouldn't stay in your party if you go around murdering random people, for example.

Edited July 9, 2016 by Mechalibur

[PIP-Clownboy]

Also, please make a console release of PoE2 

 

Please don't. 

 

 

 

That looks like an aRPG...

 

Yes Lost Ark is aRPG. I meant the environment, skills and particle system. Gameplay is fast but Pillars system uses animation speed modifiers so it can be tweaked per character. Several parameters are controlling speed modifiers. For every  repeatable animation in aRPG you can lower the speed and set up the delay of the animation and get cRPG which has delay rules for the attack

 

This isn't neogaf, kiddo

Edited July 10, 2016 by PIP-Clownboy

[PangaeaACDC]

One thing I'd like very much, is easier to get information about the effects of items on a character. It's a pain to try to figure out the best distribution, with the least amount of suppressed effects. Yes, there is the character sheet, but then I'd need to go back and forth between character and inventory sheets, and it's not easy to see in character sheet either, tucked away half-way down the page in a non-standout-ish way.

 

On a similar note, I find it odd that some items/spells you need to right-click to get the basic information about, while others will show up when you hover the item. For spells I can sort of understand it as they can be pretty detailed, but for potions it's less obvious why it's hidden away behind a right-click.

 

I'd also prefer if it was possible to click on the enchantments in a weapon/armour and see the effect right there.

 

Lifting the gaze away from the gritty details, I like a lot about the first game, but there are some things that could be improved. It would be great with more party interaction. Some of the comments and banter is a hoot, so more of that please. I'd also like to see more recruitable companions, with a bit more variety. For instance it would also be good to have several companions from the same class to choose from, and that would also give people who prefer companions over self-made guys to have e.g. 2-3 fighters or 2-3 something-else in the party.

 

This has been mentioned often, but can't be overstated: please, pretty PLEASE, do something about the many and way-too-long loading screens. In a game like BG1/2 this doesn't matter much, because it takes 1 second. When it takes 20-30 seconds it *is* a problem. Oh, and on Linux, do something about the mouse cursor defaulting to the bottom left corner, so that the screen isn't way off somewhere when the loading screen is done doing its thing.

 

I like the game, it's good, but there is also something I can't quite put my finger on that doesn't make it great. Maybe the combat was too similar and easy-ish? Or maybe the story and whole setup of it didn't have that grand-ness that for example the BG games had. But on the other hand, neither does the Witcher (only played the first so far), and I loved that one.

 

The lackluster stronghold has been mentioned often too, and I agree. It was exciting during the Kickstarter to hear mention of it, and to reach that goal, but the result hasn't been great unfortunately. Apart from the dungeon underneath it, which of course is a massive undertaking, there aren't really any quests related to it (a little, but no spoilers, so...). Some of these in BG2 weren't great either, but they all had a uniqueness to them, and some took quite the effort to finish. I'd like to see something more along those lines, I think, in PoE2.

 

If you are going with one stronghold, and I see the sense in that, like how it was done in this game, I would want to be able to tailor it much more to my needs or wishes. It might also be cool to be able to visit your surrounding land, and deal directly with issues they have, which could affect other events in the game or your stronghold, with repercussions, good or bad, for your reputation.

 

For the combat system and (mostly) soft counters, there is value in that, it means we don't have to buff to ballyhoo before tough fights, like in BG2, but it also make most combat a bit pedestrian I think. Maybe some more creative thinking is needed here. Don't really want to buff for 10 minutes before most fights, but on the other hand, some of those fights in BG were absolutely amazing. However, I do like that wizards in PoE are sort of a mix of mages and sorcerers. Definitely a good move, and it's no coincidence that lots of people loved sorcerers in BG. Wizards in PoE are even more versatile, and I think that has been a good move.

 

Whatever you do, do NOT go with cooldowns and mana pools and all that crap.

 

I didn't like the binary form of the factions, and as many others, I'm sure, didn't even know I had locked myself into one of them soon after arriving in Defiance Bay. Didn't even know about it until tens upon tens of hours later, when the other factions basically told me to feck off.

 

As an addendum, it would be awesome if there was a quest in PoE2 where we could brutally torture and eventually murder the laughing bastard from PoE1, and it would be the benevolent choice. That would give me untold pleasures

 

 

 

(Don't think I agree with a single point in the OP)

 

(Gosh, that got longer than intended -- just some thoughts I have after playing through the game almost 2 times)

[Harry Easter]

Hmm, besides less loading times I would like to see:

 

- A better paced story: The beginning in Gilded Vale was excellent, but when we arrived in Defiance Bay, the story stopped a bit until we got in the last third. At this point it became really good. Still I would like to see a mainquest, that maybe is shorter but builds up to an good climax with a lot of endings. The White March was good at this in my opinion.

 

- Make factions more integral to the plot: Alpha Protocol and Fallout: New Vegas come to my mind. I think it could help make the player to feel more at home, if they have at least one faction they sympathise with or  hate. Combine this with different philosophies in each faction (maybe there are some thieves that want to rule open while others want to be more shadowy in their dealings) and we have a good base base for different endings and motivations for repeated playthroughs.

 

- Only one big city: I think one big city with a lot of quests could deepen the setting enourmously. Say what you want about Kirkwall in Dragon Age 2, but in the end you know the dark corners of this city and its history. It also deepens the place, if you can combine the ruins in its sewers with the history of the place.

 

- Less but more exotic locations and encounters: I would like to see more of the Vithracks and the Lizardfolk from White March and interacte with their culture. It could be really interesting, since they are so different from the player and could Obsidian give some room to experiment with new concepts of morale or the ideas of souls. I would also like to see more ruins where I can use the technology of the engwithans or something like a city of Adraghosts. The setting has enough potential for those kind of ideas.

 

- The gods should be even more integral to the story: Without spoiling to much, some people posted really good ideas how to integrate Ondra or Wael in the story. Combined with Skaen, you could get a good story about secrets and intrigues just around those three guys alone.

 

- Less but deeper conpanions: I like almost all of the companions, but maybe you could build them up even more. Instead of eleven we could use six, but they all have more than one quest and the decisions of the player could influence them more than once, like for example in NWN 2 or Divinity: Original Sin as as newer example.

 

- Individualise combat more: As much as people praise BG2 for its combat, most of the time it was about using the correct order of wizard spells. I would like to see an even more balanced approach between melee,spells and fighting with pistols if this even possible.

Edited July 27, 2016 by Harry Easter

[WorstUsernameEver]

Divinity: Original Sin is one of the worst examples of companion characters in a recent RPG, though...

[Harry Easter]

Divinity: Original Sin is one of the worst examples of companion characters in a recent RPG, though...

 

Hmm, I liked them well enough, but what I meant, that they reacted more to your actions and you could talk with them about it. It formed the outlook they had at the end of the game. That's always fun.

[demeisen]

Dread of the dark.  ​Where situationally appropriate, areas should be dark.  Long lost caverns full of undead creatures for example.  An abandoned dungeon that my party is the first to explore in 500 years should not already be illuminated.  A torch or light spell should be needed, with visibility limited to some radius around the light source, to create a sense of foreboding and dread of what may be lurking in the shadows just beyond where my light reaches.

​

​Not everywhere, not all the time, but where it would naturally fit.  If your torch or spell goes out in mid-fight, your characters should be at a huge disadvantage when fighting creatures that don't have or need eyes until you can re-establish a light source.

​

​(Some older CRPGs from the 80's would not only require you to use a light to see anything whatsoever in dungeons, but sometimes would actively sabotage your light source in some places, which could get... tense).

​

Edited July 27, 2016 by demeisen

[Suen]

Add a check at launch to prevent the start of a second instance of Pillars if one is already opened.

If needed for testing .exe -ignorecheck  or something.

[demeisen]

​

Add a check at launch to prevent the start of a second instance of Pillars if one is already opened.
If needed for testing .exe -ignorecheck  or something.

 
​Oddly specific...  If you're on Linux, drop this into your Pillars of Eternity directory and it'll do that for you.  I'm sure there's a Windows equivalent, but I don't have it at the tip of my tongue.

#!/bin/bash

pgrep -f 'PillarsOfEternity' || ./start.sh

[anameforobsidian]

I agree with a whole lot of this post (enough that I liked it).  However, I disagree with these three:

 

Hmm, besides less loading times I would like to see:

 

- Only one big city: I think one big city with a lot of quests could deepen the setting enourmously. Say what you want about Kirkwall in Dragon Age 2, but in the end you know the dark corners of this city and its history. It also deepens the place, if you can combine the ruins in its sewers with the history of the place.

 

- Less but more exotic locations and encounters: I would like to see more of the Vithracks and the Lizardfolk from White March and interacte with their culture. It could be really interesting, since they are so different from the player and could Obsidian give some room to experiment with new concepts of morale or the ideas of souls. I would also like to see more ruins where I can use the technology of the engwithans or something like a city of Adraghosts. The setting has enough potential for those kind of ideas.

 

- Less but deeper conpanions: I like almost all of the companions, but maybe you could build them up even more. Instead of eleven we could use six, but they all have more than one quest and the decisions of the player could influence them more than once, like for example in NWN 2 or Divinity: Original Sin as as newer example.

 

1.  I think that points 1 &  2 above contradict each other.  Usually the best way to explore imaginary cultures is to show their living situations.  Kirkwall did that well with the Qunari, but not well with everyone else.  Multiple locations are solely a matter of the resources used to develop them.  Stalwart and Dyrford as towns had way more content per area/person, so they worked better than Defiance Bay.

 

However, I do see the benefit of having all your exploring centered around one very large hub, as you get to understand that hub better.  BG2 did this twice in Amn and Ust Natha.  There were other places (gnome village, trademeet), but  no place eclipsed the local hub.  I can see that working better than the kind of strange railroad PE offered.

 

2.  I definitely want to see more Vithrack, but I honestly think the game could be improved by adding more content to the weird maps they have.  Environmental storytelling is nice, as well as npcs who bark a few lines before giving a small quest or fighting you.  Searing falls has these incredibly rare volcanic hotsprings (that don't make sense on the worldmap, lern2geography), and there's nothing leading to it or no one there.  I have never seen a similar environment in any other game and it fel barren.  Seriously, adding a half eaten lagufeth after White March came out would say something.  Or observing a xaurip tribe dragging something back while drakes harass them.  Or having a con man who sold mineral springs water as a cure-all.

 

Black Meadow and Esternwood are two examples of relatively unique maps that are not commented on at all.  There's a ton of dead dragons in Black Meadow and no one thinks that's odd or says anything about it and the map is empty.  Esternwood is a particularly missed opportunity; there's a location full of incredibly violent diseased children.  No one in Gilded vale talks about it, and more importantly there's no one to talk to you in Easternwood.  Finding a bundle of food with a love letter, or a spouse who asks you to find their partner, or a family dropping a kid off would have done an immense job to contextualize it.  Seriously, if I knew how to mod in people, I would add extremely minor characters everywhere just because it can use it.

 

There needs to be a minor writer / designer who goes through and adds minor pieces of storytelling here and there because it makes an area so much better.  Russetwood had it, most PE maps did not.

 

3.  NWN 2 had more companions in the base game than Pillars had, and then added more in the expansion than Pillars added.  Companions were not equal; Grobnar, Cassovir, and Construct weren't as well written as Sand or the Jerros.  This is just a matter of time and resources, not a small or high number being better.  BG2 had a lot of awesome characters.  Planescape had a few awesome characters.  Lionheart Legacy of the Crusader had characters.

[Fayer]

I really really hope that not picked trash loot will disappear after some time lying on the ground instead of having bodies disappear and leaving gleaming bags forever that either way force you to pick them up and ruin your roleplay experience by having 50 of them carried by you then sold to a merchant(aside from how would you transport them, why would anyone buy dozens of xaurip spears, like seriously, what for?)or you can just leave it and have it lie there forever with it's stupid glow(if at least corpses didn't disappear and the glow would be removed, that would be alright, but no, of course not).

 

You guys had your hands in IWD2, when you killed each goblin, he didn't drop his axe, armor and all that crap, occasional gem and few coins made the looting somehow more "role-play like".

[Harry Easter]

I agree with a whole lot of this post (enough that I liked it).  However, I disagree with these three:

 

Hmm, besides less loading times I would like to see:

 

- Only one big city: I think one big city with a lot of quests could deepen the setting enourmously. Say what you want about Kirkwall in Dragon Age 2, but in the end you know the dark corners of this city and its history. It also deepens the place, if you can combine the ruins in its sewers with the history of the place.

 

- Less but more exotic locations and encounters: I would like to see more of the Vithracks and the Lizardfolk from White March and interacte with their culture. It could be really interesting, since they are so different from the player and could Obsidian give some room to experiment with new concepts of morale or the ideas of souls. I would also like to see more ruins where I can use the technology of the engwithans or something like a city of Adraghosts. The setting has enough potential for those kind of ideas.

 

- Less but deeper conpanions: I like almost all of the companions, but maybe you could build them up even more. Instead of eleven we could use six, but they all have more than one quest and the decisions of the player could influence them more than once, like for example in NWN 2 or Divinity: Original Sin as as newer example.

 

1.  I think that points 1 &  2 above contradict each other.  Usually the best way to explore imaginary cultures is to show their living situations.  Kirkwall did that well with the Qunari, but not well with everyone else.  Multiple locations are solely a matter of the resources used to develop them.  Stalwart and Dyrford as towns had way more content per area/person, so they worked better than Defiance Bay.

 

However, I do see the benefit of having all your exploring centered around one very large hub, as you get to understand that hub better.  BG2 did this twice in Amn and Ust Natha.  There were other places (gnome village, trademeet), but  no place eclipsed the local hub.  I can see that working better than the kind of strange railroad PE offered.

 

2.  I definitely want to see more Vithrack, but I honestly think the game could be improved by adding more content to the weird maps they have.  Environmental storytelling is nice, as well as npcs who bark a few lines before giving a small quest or fighting you.  Searing falls has these incredibly rare volcanic hotsprings (that don't make sense on the worldmap, lern2geography), and there's nothing leading to it or no one there.  I have never seen a similar environment in any other game and it fel barren.  Seriously, adding a half eaten lagufeth after White March came out would say something.  Or observing a xaurip tribe dragging something back while drakes harass them.  Or having a con man who sold mineral springs water as a cure-all.

 

Black Meadow and Esternwood are two examples of relatively unique maps that are not commented on at all.  There's a ton of dead dragons in Black Meadow and no one thinks that's odd or says anything about it and the map is empty.  Esternwood is a particularly missed opportunity; there's a location full of incredibly violent diseased children.  No one in Gilded vale talks about it, and more importantly there's no one to talk to you in Easternwood.  Finding a bundle of food with a love letter, or a spouse who asks you to find their partner, or a family dropping a kid off would have done an immense job to contextualize it.  Seriously, if I knew how to mod in people, I would add extremely minor characters everywhere just because it can use it.

 

There needs to be a minor writer / designer who goes through and adds minor pieces of storytelling here and there because it makes an area so much better.  Russetwood had it, most PE maps did not.

 

3.  NWN 2 had more companions in the base game than Pillars had, and then added more in the expansion than Pillars added.  Companions were not equal; Grobnar, Cassovir, and Construct weren't as well written as Sand or the Jerros.  This is just a matter of time and resources, not a small or high number being better.  BG2 had a lot of awesome characters.  Planescape had a few awesome characters.  Lionheart Legacy of the Crusader had characters.

 

1. Fair point. I could have differentiate it more. With one big city I mean one big hub, where all the major events take place. I PoE 1 we had two big cities. I felt more at home in the second one, but when we arrived there, the plot moved so far, that we couldn't get to know it better.

 

I have nothing to add to the rest.

 

2. Good ideas!

 

3. I see your point, but I think less companions could strengthen the bond even further, because you get so used to them and rely on their help, that it hits harder, if they die or betray you. It would also be easier to implement them more in the mainquest, so that they aren't just a few guys you pick up on the road.

[PangaeaACDC]

Maybe it's being greedy, but one of the reasons I want more companions with deeper interaction/integration is that it improves replay value. I've used different characters in my 2nd go through PoE from the first, and it's different and interesting (though trying to beat a pack of cheat gwlas without a priest is a pain in the neck!). If you for instance only have 5 possible companions in a 6-party game, that means you will more or less have a similar experience every time through the game.

 

In PoE there were many times I wanted to continue talking to the companions about their background and whatnot, but it wasn't an option. I want more of that, but also more companions to recruit and interact with.

[Harry Easter]

Maybe it's being greedy, but one of the reasons I want more companions with deeper interaction/integration is that it improves replay value. I've used different characters in my 2nd go through PoE from the first, and it's different and interesting (though trying to beat a pack of cheat gwlas without a priest is a pain in the neck!). If you for instance only have 5 possible companions in a 6-party game, that means you will more or less have a similar experience every time through the game.

 

In PoE there were many times I wanted to continue talking to the companions about their background and whatnot, but it wasn't an option. I want more of that, but also more companions to recruit and interact with.

 

The question is: do more companions increase the replay-value? Maybe it's just me, but most of the time I get stucked with the same group on every playthrough, because I like those characters the most and consider the others kind of as work. But I get the idea, that with more companions the chances are higher, that you like at least one person.

[Loren Tyr]

Replay value aside, even if you do end up with the same group of NPCs every time that would be by choice and it would be the NPCs that you like the most (both in terms of the characters themselves as well as the mix of classes and abilities they offer). Suppose they had only put five in PoE; there's no telling it would have actually been the five that you like playing with. And personally, even I did stick to the same five and only those five were available, that would still annoy because then they are forced upon me rather than that I choose to take them along. 

 

So I definitely would like to see more rather than fewer NPCs, and preferably also with distinctive backgrounds / races / abilities that aren't necessarily available for the player character or hirelings. Though it would be nice to have some kind of pre-built hireling as well, something in between full NPCs and regular fully modifiable hirelings (and available only from a specific inn / hiring location; possibly also in the form of random Stronghold guest, so you could actually take Korgrak along with you for example). These would have some unique features and maybe a bit of (written) background, but without extensive quest and dialogue and such. This would I think represent a nice way of adding some additional more distinctive NPC options to the game, but at a low cost in terms of development resources.

[PangaeaACDC]

That will differ a degree from person to person, but with more to choose from, more people are likely to find somebody they like. Then you have people like me who like to experience them all, over several playthroughs. Especially if they have very different outlooks on life, like generally the traditional good/evil separation.

 

With the options we have now, I'm unlikely to ever play a game of PoE without taking Eder, because he's a very capable tank (and the only fighter). But I'd prefer to have more options, but also have the companions deeper integrated into the game, with more integration and party banter. Bigger or more quests would be grand too.

 

Essentially what I'd like is to take PoE and build on it. The base is very good, so I don't see a particular need to throw it out and start anew.

[VahnXIII]

I admit to not reading every post in this thread, but I'll add my list anyways:

 

1. Deep NPC's and more of them -- have them react to the PC's choices, even if that means leaving the party.

2. More immersive city or cities -- Athkatla esque. Defiance Bay seemed painfully empty and lacking content outside of the docks district.

3. Larger wilderness maps to explore with more content -- even BG1 had this. I remember running into random bounty hunters, random quests (like a little dog turning out to be a menacing demon was awesome), more "secret areas" that become available if your skill is high enough to spot them.

4. More "choose your own adventure" story times -- not sure what they're called but I like them and find them immersive.

5. Stronghold options -- much like BG2 with the castle, planar sphere, guild hall in the city, etc. 

6. Improved ambient sounds -- the tavern sound bit is short and on loop so we hear the same rowdy laugh every 30 secs or so (you know the one I'm talking about). Overall quality could be improved.

7. Weather -- not just by region.

8. No backer NPC's please.

9. Increase overall depth -- POE is phenomenal and now that the Unity Engine is solidified as the platform to use, please please please focus on rich, engaging content and overall depth of the game. 

 

As POE =  the "spiritual successor" of BG1, let PO2 = the "spiritual successor" of BG2. I dare you.

 

Thanks for the wonderful work Obsidian.