Backer Beta First Impressions

[Adam Brennecke]

Please post your first impressions here! The team is eager to read your feedback.

 

Thanks,

Adam

[Boeroer]

The build options seem to be a lot more narrow with single classes because talents got removed and everything is class-specific now.  

 

I don't know why, but I have the impression the game looks more cartoony than PoE1. Cartoony is not the right word, but maybe you know what I mean. It's not as... gritty?

[TheisEjsing]

First of all. Great stuff. Your labour of love is really felt even in this early version. I'll share my observations so far.

 

Good stuff

 

• First and foremost, loading pipe is EPIC! 
• The start screen looks amazing. Love the sunset motive, and the colors. Overall super first impression.
• Layout options are nice
• The difficulty variaty and naming is really good. I think most players will find it intuitive.
• Big heads (obviously)
• 3620x1527 looks dope! ^_^
• Char creating looks crisp, and the character models are so pretty. 
• The icons for the character classes, atrributes, backgrounds, etc are really well done.
• and cool new backgrounds.
• Poses are super sweet! I mean, that's so great!

The not so good stuff

• No borderless window full screen. Can't use other monitors without tapping out. (or I have missed something)
• The recommendation stars are easy to miss for new players I think. 
• A few of the culture descriptions are abit short for me personally. The living land and deadfire descriptions are too different in detail. It might just be me nitpicking, but I'll include it anyways.

​I'll add more as I go. And again thanks for all the hard work! It's looking really good.

Edited November 15, 2017 by TheisEjsing

[Rhaeg]

• and cool new baggrounds.

 

 

 

[TheisEjsing]

 

• and cool new baggrounds.

 

 

 

 

lol. I should fix that.

[Tanred]

First quick impressions:

 

+ character models and armor on inventory screen are looking great

+ shadows and animations, the world feels to be more alive

+ loading times are noticeably faster

+ ability selection screen (it would be great to be able to display this screen anytime not just on level up)

+ multiclassing

+ veteran difficulty looks to be quite challenging

+ the writing seems to be good so far

+ penetration overhaul

+ slower spellcasting and retargetting (however, which in my opinion is not currently usable, please see below)

+ pathfinding is lot better than in PoE1

+ I like the map:)

 

- combat still too fast, maybe combat auto-slow and half speed not working yet?

- the autopause option "Party Member About to Finish Long Cast" triggers on normal attacks too, which is like almost all the time, so currently it's not really usable. However, it is needed for retargetting to work properly, so I hope it gets changed/fixed. Btw. "Party Member Finishes the Ability" autopause suffers from the same bug.

[Wormerine]

So far so good. Didn’t get to try try combat just yet (spent all my time so far in opening village). Lots of things to like. I am a bit disappointing with how character’s daily routines works so far, compared to what was advertised. Most of the characters keep doing what they do no matter the time of day. I kept having an eye on one of the characters for quest purposes and he seemed to teleport from one place to another depending on a time of the day. Is that how it will be, or will they impliment NPCs walking from one point to another? Having some performance problems and UI likes to flicker quite a bit.

[algroth]

I'm watching a Backer Beta stream, and the impression I'm given is that some of the locations, for example Tikawara, look a little rough in the lighting and textures. The sand on the Tikawara shore for example looks pretty rough when it transitions into dirt or grass for example, while the lighting does feel like it flattens the area a bit. Looking very good so far otherwise, I'd love to be able to play it myself.

[Wormerine]

I don't know why, but I have the impression the game looks more cartoony than PoE1. Cartoony is not the right word, but maybe you know what I mean. It's not as... gritty?

The tropical environment and more sun certainly gives a different vibe. I do like it though. One side quest I completed was morally conflicted and was rooted in reality still feeling very much like PoE. But I wasn’t greeted by a tree ornated with dead people - 0/10.

[Aramintai]

But I wasn’t greeted by a tree ornated with dead people - 0/10.

 

Well, the beta doesn't have a prologue. And judging by the trailers so far it's gonna be a grim one - Caed Nua destroyed, your soul almost snuffed out by Eothas. So I wouldn't be so hasty with scoring anything yet.

[draego]

The build options seem to be a lot more narrow with single classes because talents got removed and everything is class-specific now.

 

I don't know why, but I have the impression the game looks more cartoony than PoE1. Cartoony is not the right word, but maybe you know what I mean. It's not as... gritty?

 

I was wondering about this from the twitch backer beta video i watched. I suppose they want you to multiclass to get the other talents but it does hurt a little that single classes are less flexible. The real class i am worried about is the ranger. I want to single class ranger all the way because i am not sure how the animal will hold up late in game being nerfed by multiclass but that means i may be locked in to certain build because classes are not flexible but it may turn out alright. Overall the twitch stuff looked fun.

Edited November 15, 2017 by draego

[Adam Brennecke]

I'm watching a Backer Beta stream, and the impression I'm given is that some of the locations, for example Tikawara, look a little rough in the lighting and textures. The sand on the Tikawara shore for example looks pretty rough when it transitions into dirt or grass for example, while the lighting does feel like it flattens the area a bit. Looking very good so far otherwise, I'd love to be able to play it myself.

 

The village is missing the paint-over pass, which adds the blending between the sand and grass (and adds other fine details). This pass will be included in a future release. IMO the lighting looks amazing in game - however when the scene's weather is overcast it does flatten out the look of the area. Curious to hear what others think! Thanks for the feedback.

[IndiraLightfoot]

First quick impressions:

 

+ character models and armor on inventory screen are looking great

+ shadows and animations, the world feels to be more alive

+ loading times are noticeably faster

+ ability selection screen (it would be great to be able to display this screen anytime not just on level up)

+ multiclassing

+ veteran difficulty looks to be quite challenging

+ the writing seems to be good so far

+ penetration overhaul

+ slower spellcasting and retargetting (however, which in my opinion is not currently usable, please see below)

+ pathfinding is lot better than in PoE1

+ I like the map:)

 

- combat still too fast, maybe combat auto-slow and half speed not working yet?

- the autopause option "Party Member About to Finish Long Cast" triggers on normal attacks too, which is like almost all the time, so currently it's not really usable. However, it is needed for retargetting to work properly, so I hope it gets changed/fixed. Btw. "Party Member Finishes the Ability" autopause suffers from the same bug.

Yeah, this pretty much sums it up for me - including the combat speed. And yep, retargetting doesn't seem to work yet.

And I'd like to add that I really like those metalinked word descriptions a la Tyranny.

 

I loved the new character levelling trees. However, one small caveat: When you had a tree and you were supposed to pick an ability, there was never any counter on how many you had available. Often 1, but sometimes 2, per level-up. Your only hint at it going on was that your "next"-button was greyed out, if you didn't pick two. 

 

And while exploring maps, I have a question:

-Why do you see where and what some of the stuff are, with big icons and all, while some is almost hidden ( a slight glitter is visible), and yet other stuff is completely hidden, like surprises?

 

The UI of some of the mercenary characters, like the Wizard's, was literally wobbling during combat.

 

And at the very start, when the party was standing on the dock, our ship was bobbing frenetically. But, after those first introductory lines, the ship began to bob more in tune with the rest of the sea.

Edited November 16, 2017 by IndiraLightfoot

[algroth]

 

I'm watching a Backer Beta stream, and the impression I'm given is that some of the locations, for example Tikawara, look a little rough in the lighting and textures. The sand on the Tikawara shore for example looks pretty rough when it transitions into dirt or grass for example, while the lighting does feel like it flattens the area a bit. Looking very good so far otherwise, I'd love to be able to play it myself.

 

The village is missing the paint-over pass, which adds the blending between the sand and grass (and adds other fine details). This pass will be included in a future release. IMO the lighting looks amazing in game - however when the scene's weather is overcast it does flatten out the look of the area. Curious to hear what others think! Thanks for the feedback.

 

I suspected as much, but thought I should point it out just in case. It could well be that I saw Tikawara in overcast weather, which gave off that impression. Great work in what I've so far seen!

Edited November 16, 2017 by algroth

[mpking52@gmail.com]

Had fun today trying different builds and finding new fun with them. I have to say that combat feels hectic at the moment - other posters mentioned the speed is too much. It just seems to me that too much is going on and individual actions lose almost all impact. I found myself just reading and scrolling back through the combat log in order to follow what was happening.

[Lamppost in Winter]

The larger variety of role-playing skills to build into is very welcome. As Boeroer mentioned, the narrower range of talents to purchase less so. Haven't tried a multiclass character yet.

 

The new stealth systems seem fine, however, I don't like that you're immediately fully spotted if you begin stealth within hearing radius, even if you're not in a vision cone. It's quite tedious having to find a spot where there aren't any hearing radii, wait until you're not visible, then sneak back in. 

[DozingDragon]

 

First quick impressions:

 

+ character models and armor on inventory screen are looking great

+ shadows and animations, the world feels to be more alive

+ loading times are noticeably faster

+ ability selection screen (it would be great to be able to display this screen anytime not just on level up)

+ multiclassing

+ veteran difficulty looks to be quite challenging

+ the writing seems to be good so far

+ penetration overhaul

+ slower spellcasting and retargetting (however, which in my opinion is not currently usable, please see below)

+ pathfinding is lot better than in PoE1

+ I like the map:)

 

- combat still too fast, maybe combat auto-slow and half speed not working yet?

- the autopause option "Party Member About to Finish Long Cast" triggers on normal attacks too, which is like almost all the time, so currently it's not really usable. However, it is needed for retargetting to work properly, so I hope it gets changed/fixed. Btw. "Party Member Finishes the Ability" autopause suffers from the same bug.

Yeah, this pretty much sums it up for me - including the combat speed. And yep, retargetting doesn't seem to work yet.

And I'd like to add that I really like those metalinked word descriptions a la Tyranny.

 

I loved the new character levelling trees. However, one small caveat: When you had a tree and you were supposed to pick an ability, there was never any counter on how many you had available. Often 1, but sometimes 2, per level-up. Your only hint at it going on was that your "next"-button was greyed out, if you didn't pick two. 

 

And while exploring maps, I have a question:

-Why do you see where and what some of the stuff are, with big icons and all, while some is almost hidden ( a slight glitter is visible), and yet other stuff is completely hidden, like surprises?

 

The UI of some of the mercenary characters, like the Wizard's, was literally wobbling during combat.

 

And at the very start, when the party was standing on the dock, our ship was bobbing frenetically. But, after those first introductory lines, the ship began to bob more in tune with the rest of the sea.

 

 

The level-up interface definitely needs some refinements, as indicated above.  

[Wormerine]

Indoor location streaming is a wonderful thing! Makes exploring town areas much more fluid. I did encounter some minor stutters when exploring town back and forth (my guess is streaming rest of the map?). I use HDD drive.

[Xaratas]

First Impression: To many „Continue“ in the dialogcontrols, and no scrollback buffer.

What was the reason for giving every line a clear panel?

The Conlang tooltips are cool. I like them.

[Katarack21]

Gorgeous. Love the new character models, love the character creation method, *really* digging the artwork.

Only bug found so far is that my "Deadfire Archipelago" background doesn't seem to be registering; the dialogue options are still locked out.

[morhilane]

Some impressions and issues.

 

Character creation:

- Orlan female has a buggy hair selection where character is bald instead of having hair.

- Deadfire Archipelago doesn't seems to give an attribute bonus

- Some of the "job" only grant a +2 to a single skill instead of a total of +3 like the others (example: Laborer)

- Sub-race don't display their special feature (are they in the beta?).

- Going backward in character creation is somewhat annoying (can't click the step at the bottom, going back behave a bit weird once you hit classes).

- In the last section, I would put face/hair selection before colors. I was going back to colors after selecting the hair.

+ I really like the new models and general artworks.

 

Gameplay

- Priest feels very limited with everything turned into a spell, the sub-class spell limitations and 0 passives.

- Pure Wizard seems like a poor man Wizard, having access to all the spells in theory doesn't seem worth not getting a sub-class bonus.

- Rapier and Estoc weapon proficiency have the same modal (I'm not sure if that's intended or not or just a text error in character creation).

- I saw some warning on the map about level difference with an encounter flag, but I kinda didn't read them before clicking. Maybe this should be color-coded (like RED). Also, I decided to leave an encounter on the map and the message seemed to say "comeback later" but the encounter disappeared.

- I'm a bit unsure how the averaged group skill work (as in when is it used).

- Combat is still a bit of a cluster, I lost sight of my character a few times. I think they literally disappeared actually.

- Merchant inventory needs separators between items.

+ Pathfinding looks so much better, I love the terrain affecting stride. Making barrels explode with a fireball is awesome. I also like per-encounter abilities quite a bit.

 

Minor bug

- Repair supplies has no icon, well I don't think a white box with a read X is the intended icon.

[dukeisaac]

My first impressions (in no particular order) :

 

+ nice art (needs a bit of tweaking, but my rig is also bad)

+ good character creation

+ new skills are cool (although haven't really used them yet)

 

- way too many sound effects on hit, inspirations and such. Even with the volume down, it was overwhelming

- combat can become even more confusing then POE1. It's actually hard to distinguish a downed companion from a healthy one. It needs to be clearer when companions are down. Also, in fights, enemies and companions seem to often become one big blob of colour. Hard to see.

- removing universal talents was also a bad idea, there should be active abilities, passive talents and universal talents.

- Lots of missing text (very forgivable at this stage)

- the deadfire archipelago background is missing its bonus

- the UI flickers in fights when the game has been running for a while (making it very hard to select spells or abilities)

- a few random crashes here and there (especially when going to the main menu)

- the level up sound keeps ringing every now and then for no reason

- many icons (specifically items) are a bit too small... (I'll admit my monitor isn't too big)

 

So yeah for now, that's where I'm at. I'll give another run soon enough. So far, I'm 6.5 on 10.

[PK htiw klaw eriF]

Like the character models, but wish eye color got a slider or something and hoping for a facial hair like the rough beard from New Vegas. Also think a lot of wizard buffs should be transmutation and not enchantment, was confused there. And multiclass levelups could use some work when you pick more than one class ability. Overall looks cool and can't wait to play more.

[cheesevillain]

I personally love the removal of universal talents. They made all the classes blend into one another like a soupy mass in PoE 1.

Edited November 16, 2017 by cheesevillain

[DigitalCrack]

The build options seem to be a lot more narrow with single classes because talents got removed and everything is class-specific now.

 

I don't know why, but I have the impression the game looks more cartoony than PoE1. Cartoony is not the right word, but maybe you know what I mean. It's not as... gritty?

Restarted for the 5th time now cause everything feels a bit boring class wise. you cant actually do what you want with any given class without multiclassing and each class idvidually doesnt really have enough abilities to be diverse at all build wise on its own. Ranger's subclasses are pointless and the class itself is the most rigid of all the ones I have tried so far. all the class trees except for a few casters feel very sparse also. So far the new class system is just not impressive at all...