New Features Trailer and Preview

[Infinitron]

 

https://www.pcgamesn.com/pillars-of-eternity-2-deadfire/pillars-of-eternity-2-romance

 

Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire’s nuanced romance will not be "a bunch of Mass Effect sex scenes"

 

 

You can take the stealth approach or you can go in guns blazing. At least, that is the way player choice has traditionally been expressed by developers in pre-release demos at trade shows. This is why it strikes me as odd to hear “guns blazing” in the context of a swords and sorcery game made by Obsidian - a studio with a reputation for presenting a bigger breadth of choice than most in their RPGs.

 

But this is Pillars of Eternity II: a fantasy world of privateers and pistoliers. The guns in question are the cannons mounted on our party’s ship, which lead producer Justin Britch is suggesting we bring to bear against a fort belonging to the Principi sen Patrena - a loose faction of pirates operating in the Deadfire Archipelago.

 

“Mmm,” Steven King says. “It’s probably not the best idea.”

 

King is our man at the keyboard and, more pertinently, Pillars of Eternity II’s QA lead. Nobody knows better than him what is and is not a good idea inside its world. And so Britch opts for a “sneaky-deaky” way of infiltrating the fort instead. Rather than clamber in through a window, though that is an option, he raises the flag of the Principi, acquired earlier in the game from an ally, and sails into port unchallenged.

 

This is just one way in which Pillars’ systems interplay across its seas. Your ship is as customisable as any companion in your party, upgrading from sloop to galleon, picking up crew, swapping out cannons and, yes, flying a changeable flag that influences how the various factions floating around the Archipelago respond to you.

 

Quest solutions like these are written for the moment as you should expect from Obsidian. Although the Deadfire is a true open world, free to explore once you leave the first island, nothing on its map is randomly generated.

 

 

“Everything in our game is actually hand-crafted,” Britch tells us. “Every single piece of content, area, fight, every interaction, that’s hand-placed and hand-scripted.”

 

Once inside the fort, one of our companions, the furry and diminutive orlan Serafen, pipes up. He is a member of the Principi, and there is somebody he would like to hash things out with while here.

 

“Our companions have had a ton more work put into them in Pillars II, and they are much more part of the story and the world that you’re living in,” Britch says. “They’ll actually react to the quests you’re going on and help you out in a lot of circumstances. They’ll have much more of an opinion and voice in the game.”

 

That new voice has led to significantly deeper intra-party relationships. Your companions will rub up against each other, depending on the views they hear each other espousing, and potentially develop rifts. Serafen, for instance, has no patience for racism. What he does enjoy are acts of passion and worldliness - and if you show your companions enough of what they enjoy, your own relationships can lead to romance.

 

 

“It’s not gonna be a bunch of Mass Effect sex scenes,” Britch clarifies. “It should be a pretty natural mechanic. If you do things that the companions like, then relationship options will open up. There’s a lot more feeling that this is a party of people, and not just that you are the god hero conquering all that you see.”

 

In this instance, no love is in the air - King simply tells Serafen to pipe down again. There is more immediate business to take care of. We are here to confront Benwith, a pirate we have had an earlier altercation with, and who has taken over the fort - much to the discontent of those pirates who are not part of his crew.

 

Our party decides to creep through the dungeon below the fort rather than face an entire faction’s best at relatively low level. While Pillars of Eternity II provides plenty of direction for those wanting a balanced combat experience, it is perfectly happy to let you stumble across enemies far beefier than you are equipped to handle. Britch calls it an “old-school philosophy.”

 

 

“If you want to go and explore what’s gonna happen,” he says, “you can find that out for yourself.”

 

“Too many bad memories,” King mutters.

 

Well aware that the dungeon represents a potential weak point, the Principi have filled its corridors with guards. In past demos, the party has come face-to-face with patrols and fallen into open combat. This time, King decides to take advantage of Pillars of Eternity II’s improved stealth system, which now tracks the vision cones and hearing radius of your opponents. The noise simulation in particular offers new opportunities - like distracting guards with firecrackers.

 

Passing by without commotion, the party reaches the cells, discovering what Britch calls the “dirty naked men.” These are not, in fact, a new faction, but a pirate crew that have fallen foul of Benwith’s leadership. Their knowledge of the fort’s layout will be invaluable - but before they will open their mouths, we will have to open their cells.

 

Pickpocketing is a risky manoeuvre, but made more palatable by another new feature - companions in Pillars of Eternity II can now pool their resources when testing skills. Your second-best thief is no longer a useless tag-along, then, but an effective boost to your party’s overall ability. King manages to procure a key from a nearby guard, and the Dirty Naked Men let us know the whereabouts of Benwith’s ship - a personal weakness that, if threatened, should lure him out from behind his entourage.

 

 

To reach the ship, however, the party must face its crew. King begins the battle by targeting nearby barrels of gunpowder, blowing a chunk off the pirates’ health. Fighting in Pillars of Eternity II is much as it was in the first game - a real-time battle system that encourages regular pausing to issue orders. But environmental hazards are new, and so are the deeply customisable AI scripts that govern companions when left them to their own devices.

 

The crew dispatched, King rings the ship’s bell. Sure enough, Benwith emerges to investigate. There are dialogue options available - like any good pirate, Benwith is willing to barter for his life - but the party opts to instagib him instead.

 

“We love gibs,” Britch says with satisfaction.

 

The decision will impact the party’s standing with the Principi. And that matters, since you will need the assistance of one of these factions later in the game’s critical path. This is what distinguishes Pillars of Eternity II from other games that offer sneaky-deaky stealth or blazing guns. Actions make noise, not only in the echoey dungeons of pirate forts, but throughout the Deadfire Archipelago where reputation and consequence carries across the waves with an unmistakable Obsidian timbre.

Edited March 26, 2018 by Infinitron

[SonicMage117]

Nice trailer! Though nothing really "New" for us who have followed the game closely.

 

Thank God that romances are more quiet, they made the right decision. That said, hopefully this thread doesn't become all about disappointment in romance options. We all basically knew this was coming since Josh said he wasn't a fan of romances from the beginning.

[fortuntek]

Yup, pretty much a trailer for everybody but us. I notice it was pretty vague as to how the game actually works though. If I didn't already know what Deadfire was about this trailer would have done very little to inform me

[Aramintai]

Cool trailer but I didn't like the music. It's too epic and not like in the first game at all. I hope it's just for the trailer.

[SonicMage117]

Now that you mention it, it does sound more like something from Divinity series than Pillars lol

 

I think it would have been so much better in a ship video, since the epic ost's do well for sailing. This trailer simply missed the mark.

Edited March 26, 2018 by SonicMage117

[injurai]

Cool trailer but I didn't like the music. It's too epic and not like in the first game at all. I hope it's just for the trailer.

 

It did feel cinematically out of tone, but I quite liked the siren song at the end. I think this trailer will perform well in capturing people's attention.

 

Also that dragon? model looks great.

[SonicMage117]

Have they been watching Narnia? (0:40-2:30? Hmmm... the vibe is there!)

 

FOR NARNIA AND FOR EORA!!!!!!

Edited March 26, 2018 by SonicMage117

[Nail]

Dragon was new.

[algroth]

Cool trailer but I didn't like the music. It's too epic and not like in the first game at all. I hope it's just for the trailer.

 

Exactly. It was very nondescript and generic twaddle. Here's hoping it's not indicative of the game's soundtrack.

 

Edit: So apparently it's not. Whew. Here's the song used on the trailer and where it comes from:

 

Edited March 26, 2018 by algroth

[jf8350143]

I'll be impressed if they can make "mass effect sex scene" happen in deadfire, that would take some serious effort.

 

Also kind wired to see Notti holding her lantern like a mug. At first I thought there is a bug about her 3d model.

[SonicMage117]

I'll be impressed if they can make "mass effect sex scene" happen in deadfire, that would take some serious effort.Also kind wired to see Notti holding her lantern like a mug. At first I thought there is a bug about her 3d model.

Costs too much money for them though, plus CGI cut-scene would make it feel "off" it would probably be some weird hand-drawn karma sutra atuff which would make it far worse than Mass Effect's infamous sex scenes.

[Sedrefilos]

Good stuff. I hope the waiting for the exterminators to finish bug hunting will be worthwile.

Edited March 26, 2018 by Sedrefilos

[Yenkaz]

1:13 - "You know what? **** this puzzle ****. We'll just reattach any lost limbs afterwards."

[Gfted1]

A game feature that's the spiritual successor to Leisure Suit Larry? Color me interested!

[The Sharmat]

I'll believe it when I see it. I agree with that old Josh Sawyer post about how romance is both under and over used in these games but it's so hard to get it right, and I know people will be clambering for the Bioware style. Here's hoping.

[Wormerine]

Ha! Was so excited to be the first one to see this trailer so I posted it in Josh's News and just now saw that another thread is already up!

Some minor but very good UI aditions to the ship view. Hopefully there is more of that overall.

[AndreaColombo]

The dragon and companion models look pretty cool (especially Tekehu—very cool texture.)

Edited March 26, 2018 by AndreaColombo

[The Sharmat]

It says something about the state of this genre that Romance was in the article's title and barely even addressed in the article itself.

[SonicMage117]

Of course, it's being kept quiet because it's going to be sething different than we all think so no use in getting backers disappointed before the game actually releases.

 

It'll probably be something weird/goofy like D:OS like helping cats fall in love We all do not want that but it may be something similarly crazy because Deadfire's new vibe actually allows for some craziness extent while the first did not.

[Guest]

My favorite thing about this is Tekehu throwing that sassy vibe at 0:40

[draego]

I'll believe it when I see it. I agree with that old Josh Sawyer post about how romance is both under and over used in these games but it's so hard to get it right, and I know people will be clambering for the Bioware style. Here's hoping.

 

Not sure if you meant this but I hope its not Bioware style.

[PatrioticChief]

Would prefer a beta update but I suppose I can make do with this. Enjoyed the trailer. 

[Andraste]

Well, they could go with the Divinity: Original Sin 2 option, where the ubiquitous narrator calmly describes the sex your character is having in somewhat graphic detail.

 

(Probably not, though.)

[PatrioticChief]

Well, they could go with the Divinity: Original Sin 2 option, where the ubiquitous narrator calmly describes the sex your character is having in somewhat graphic detail.

 

(Probably not, though.)

 

Divinity 2 is freaking funny man lol. 

[SonicMage117]

Well, they could go with the Divinity: Original Sin 2 option, where the ubiquitous narrator calmly describes the sex your character is having in somewhat graphic detail.

 

(Probably not, though.)

Obsidian could take a few things from Larian, couldn't do any wrong.

 

As long as Obsidian kept Pillars personality intact, it would work out well.