Divinity: Original Sin - Enhanced Edition

I really really tried to enjoy Divinity: Original Sin (D:OS) after I started playing. I have no major problems with the art-style, turn-based combat, tone (mostly -- the charmed orc and Bellegor are kinda messed up) or other aspects, but Agency in D:OS is backwards. You'll be dealing with a quest, getting to enjoy it, and the quest will cut off (be impossible to finish by design) until you've reached some later arbitrary point (finished/started other quests) . cRPG's often do some of this -- and that's fine -- but in D:OS it seems to be more or less the norm and there is no acknowledgment (single line of dialogue, anything) that the quest might be solvable later. Also, there is no story or setting logic tying one quest that cannot be finished with whatever quest that will allow it to finish later. Larian expects you to shut up, play along, and guess what they expect you to do (choice a, b, or c) at the exact moment they expect you to do it. Instead of Agency, where you would be able to make choices and follow them through, you get Interactivity, where you're supposed to derp around the gameworld and randomly bump into content. Derping and bumping is not very well suited to the (not bad in and of itself) pushy beef-gating of the gameworld. This is the kind of videogame you play by alt-tabbing to a wiki. It's like they took the backwardness of most crafting systems found everywhere -- and D:OS has just such a miserable, pointless, hacky, obtuse and arbitrary crafting system -- and designed everything else that way. Lots of fuss about stuff like being able to get inside a chest by picking the lock, crushing it, finding the key, burning it, etc. -- but that's interactivity; not Agency. Character builds are functionally the same. Wizard? Use your skills to create pools of oil and set them on fire, create static clouds to stun your enemies, etc. Ranger? Same thing, only with craftable arrows. Rogue? Fighter? Same thing, only with craftable grenades.

This game was already a masterpiece when it released, but now Larian delivers, free of charge for current owners of the game, an enhanced edition with full voice acting, new quests, new combat options, and many other things, and which includes all the previously released DLCs. Just for this I have to say a big thank you to Larian Studios! It's refreshing to see this from a games developer nowadays!

After reading other reviews, I was led to believe that this was a cRPG masterpiece. Don't get me wrong, it is a great game, but it is not by any means perfect. The combat system is excellent and is probably its strongest element. It is also a beautiful game and has great visuals, interface, and mechanics. Nevertheless, story and narrative gets too goofy. While the lore seemed interesting and with potential at first, lightheartedness overtakes it and becomes annoying after a certain point. I expected characters to be much more interesting. I see this game and it has a lot of potential in its RPG elements that could have been better executed.

This game sucks. I wanted to like it, I really did. But it's just not good. There are aspects of it that are good. The combat is fun, but you have to slog through over 10 hours of the most mundane detective quest ever conceived. The NPCs are dull. the jokes are painfully unfunny, the medieval lord is named... Jake? Not Jacob, or any remotely appropriate fantasy sounding name, but Jake. They might as well have named him Zippy or something. It's just awful. One of your companions is a knight that sounds Texan, another is a fully voiced MUTE! Because apparently people who can't speak should be voice acted. I want to punch the person who thought that was a good idea right in the nose. I do not understand why this game is so popular. It's garbage, I deeply regret buying it.

D: OS EE is a welcome addition to the turn-based RPG school of games. Pros: - Nice graphics. - The environment detail is nicely done. Each location looks great. - Turn-based combat letting you plan your moves and attacks. - Good voice acting. - Your characters can be a mix of classes... you are not pigeon-holed into tank, cleric, etc. Cons: - Gets tedious and boring toward the end. - The plot is really bad... - The cut scenes are poorly animated. - Crafting is pointless for most items. - Documentation is sorely lacking. E.g. finding out what the different classes and spells do requires you to search online. - The camera should let you zoom out more.