Divinity: Original Sin 2 - Definitive Edition

I've been playing D:OS 2 since the first Alpha release came out, and it just got better and better. Because of what I had seen so far, my expectations were already pretty high when the full release finally came out - and Larian still managed to surpass them. This game is a detailed, lovingly crafted, polished gem which offers something for a wide variety of tastes. You like to explore and uncover a good story? Nose around to your heart's content, poke into every nook and cranny (there are lots of them in those beautifully designed areas) and talk to characters, most of whom will have something interesting to say. You prefer tactical combat? Crank up the difficulty and try to figure out how to defeat those enemies, who have the same repertoire of tricks at their disposal as you, and will gleefully use them all to crush you. I was a little sceptical at first when Larian announced just a few weeks before release that they were going to add full VO to the game, contrary to initial announcements. Having listened to those characters, I can only say, "thank goodness they did". The voice acting is superb and adds that final spark of life to excellently written characters. Can't recommend this game highly enough!

Larian Studios consistently puts out wonderful games. This is no exception. The graphics, the voice acting, the magical exploration, the combat, the choices that have consequences, the humor! It's all there. Inventory management is similar to D:OS I and yet there is less to pick up. They learned to clean up the clutter. The crafting system is easier to learn and use. WONDERFUL! I will not fawn over the game, as it's been done. I WILL name the flaws, or issues that certain gamers may not like: 1) While it's an isometeric, combat-heavy game it is not an ARPG. It is not a Diablo clone.If you want constant action and hack and slash all the time this game may not be for you. 2) Sometimes it's tough to see everything on the screen. While you can rotate the camera 360 it's still tough. It's a compliment to the game though, as there is a lot going on. 3) It's difficult. You will lose some fights. Levels don't scale. And that is a good thing. Save a LOT and learn. I have had my ass handed to me a few times by some mobs and then came right back and figured out how to beat them. It may take a while. 4) Turned-based combat. It's wonderful for me, as I have slow muscle twitch. If you want fast, hack and slash it's not for you. Some battles may take 10, 20, 30 minutes. If you are in a hurry just know that you will be frustrated at the pace. 5) Character creation... It always baffles me why so many games implement SO many options for characters' looks. In this game you barely see the face of your character and yet you can choose many options for hair, face, color, etc... It seems to me that in isometric games less should be put on looks for characters and more into other resources. 6) Quests are often random and tough to figure out. That is another compliment, but for those who like more straight-forward quests beware! That's really all that I can think of. This game is an instant classic! Please buy, play and create! I am looking forward to the GM mode and the community-created adventures. This game should be relevant for 10+ years! YAY!

When launcher pops up, click 'Get Started' and the bottom right click 'Skip' Still launches the launcher but at least that.

Sort by "Most recent" and check reviews of not just the "final" product, but what you get now. The launcher is inexcusable. The game existed and was sold for years, then Larian pushed an intrusive, annoying, time wasting marketing tool onto new and existing players. You can jump through hoops to get around it, but you shouldn't have to. Once you get to the game, it's actually great for 80-100 hours. Then you get to Arx and the difficulty skyrockets. It's not the difficulty that wrecks the game, though - it's the tedious, poor design. According to walkthroughs I've followed, the Definitive Edition severely nerfs XP earned throughout the game. This makes your party chronically underleveled in Arx and you'll get nowhere trying to explore and just play the game. You have to hit specific sites and encounters in a specific order to get XP or you just hit brick wall after brick wall. The writing in Arx follows the same trend - you'll need a walkthrough telling you what quest order is needed to prevent locking out other quest branches. Even once you hit what seems to be a soft level cap now at 20 (no longer possible to get enough XP for 21), the design of the battles shifts from challenging to player to annoying and frustrating. Whoever designed the last act gave up on interesting and spammed endless respawning enemies all over. As the difficulty skyrockets, the quality of the game takes a nosedive. It's absolutely insidious that the game is fantastic until the designers of the final act drive the bus off a cliff. Arx renders the rest of the game a waste of time.

While it is not obvious at the beginning, the Larian account is entirely optional. You need to click the "getting started button", then you can check "do not ask next time" option and click "skip" button. Regarding the game itself, I have very mixed feeling. It is obviously a labor of love and passion. Maybe a little bit rough on the edges. And it is great, epic cRPG. Tons of NPCs, each with unique dialogue. Large, living locations. But it just does not work for me. When each NPC has a name and their own dialogue line, you do not really know if this NPC is important or not. It is indeed immersive. But not wanting to miss something important, I need to talk to every NPC in the location. And this feels like chore. I mean, it could work for me if the locations would be smaller. The starting island is very fun for me – it has the righ scope for that kind of gameplay. But later it is very easy to simply get lost. I was playing Divinity Original Sin 2 twice or thrice already, and always got tired (mind, tired – not bored) around 1/3 of the second act. I am going to give it another chance; in fact, I did install Divinity again yesterday. Recently I finished Pillars of Eternity II. I feel that while Divinity Original Sin 2 is better cRPG, PoE 2 is just more fun to play... I love old school isometric RPGs, but I wonder if this type of world building would be more fun to play if the game would be in 3rd or 1st person.