Review - PILLARS OF ETERNITY II: DEADFIRE - The epitome of pause-based RPG greatness?
Well, all I can say is that with its Fig funding ending with a staggering $4.4 Million, Pillars of Eternity 2 doesn't disappoint at all.
The Californians from Obsidian are offering us a huge old-fashioned C-RPG, taking place in a beautiful archipelago, on which you'll pretend to play explorers and pirates, and more importantly, get a very nice tan!
And that's exactly what POE was needing, a nice breath of fresh air.
Now let's see how really good it is...
| Store | Platform | OVERALL RATING: 89% |
| Buy it on GOG | PC |
+ THE POSITIVE
- Incredible graphics- A HUGE free-roam world to explore - VERY deep character customization - Coherent and immersive
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THE NEGATIVE
- You can't side with everybody- Forgettable OST |
| Buy it on Amazon | PS4 | |
| Buy it on Amazon | Switch | |
| Buy it on Amazon | Xbox One |
JUST WHEN I THOUGHT I WOULD BE AT PEACE...
Hello, I'm the Watcher! I might look like a 7" tall mighty warrior waving a bloody axe, but you can call me Lily the cute kitty. Meow! 🐱❤️️
The mysterious and wild archipelago which is going to serve as a frame for our new adventures is named "Deadfire"!
After the events of the first game(which I hope you bought? Hey, do you know how high the rent is here? I need money here!), I have decided to withdraw in this old fortress named "Caed Nua"(which might mean "NewCastle", I think?), to live a simple life, far from the deities and their incessant whims.
And at last I'm self-sufficient and can grow my own cucumbers!
"Hey Lily, What do you do with cucumbers?"
"Mind your own business!"😓
ANYWAY, since I'm aaaaalways so lucky, Eothas, the "god of light and rebirth", who was believed DEAD, awakens just under MY stronghold!!! Are you kidding me??
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| Oh yeah, really scary, Eothas. Go for the eyes, Boo!! |
So, this nitwit takes possession of the huge statue that sits beneath my castle, violently extricates himself from the ground(my marble tiles!! I haven't finished paying them off!), and start to walk slowly like a freak across the oceans of Eora, annihilating everything in its path. Supeeeer...
And not mentioning how eco-unfriendly it is. Think about all of the destroyed coral reefs!
I hope white sharks bit his ankles!
In the process, the bugger has managed to take away a portion of my own soul, and left me half dead without even calling 911!
Well I'm not going to let this unanswered!
Time to pursue him beyond the seven seas if it's necessary, and I'll make him pay for my tiles!
Well, I see through my spyglass that apparently, the bastard is heading for "Deadfire"...
Which shall be renamed soon "DeadEothas"! ha ha! Okay, it doesn't sound that good though.
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| I have always loved inventory screens, don't you? You'll feel right at home in PoE II, if you've played the first game, or even older games like Baldur's Gate. |
Thanks, Obsidian! I feel really optimistic about fighting mighty gods...
And this time, it's downright Berath, the god of death himself, who is sending me on a crusade!
Galawan, Magran, Ondra, the three stooges are back too!
So get ready for religious wars and philosophical arguments("My god is better than yours!" "Yeah well, you're ugly!"), like in the first game, with however a small difference which I appreciate a lot, as somebody who actually skipped a lot of the story of the first game:
Obsidian went out of its way to explain everything much better now.
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| This reminds me of my last hangover after a Tequila shots contest... |
Right from the beginning, Deadfire takes five to ten minutes to properly describe and explain its origins and its lore, immersing you in a much more believable world.
Deities finally have faces and voices, whereas they were just products of snippets of information seized here and there in the first game.
This caused some players(like myself!) to feel disconnected from the story.
Even the thick fog that surrounded the confusing ending of the first game is also gone, and everything is explained in a few paragraphs with clear simplicity.
It's sad, but I understand better the entirety of Pillars of Eternity 1 storyline with just a few paragraphs in the sequel introduction, than after having sunken hours of gameplay in the first game.
PEOPLE OF DEADFIRE
Very early, you understand that Obsidian hasn't lost its mojo and still know how to do what it does best: write an insanely detailed and immersive story, laid on the foundations of a perfectly credible universe, with its specific social rules, its countless cultural beliefs, and obviously, all of the resulting tensions.
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| Welcome to the friendly Huana tribe! I found a sign somewhere saying "you loot, we shoot". I added with a pencil "And then we chop off your didgeridoo!". Hey I don't care, I play as a girl!😂 |
The indigenous Huana, characterized by "aquatic" features, were the first to populate the archipelago, as traditional tribes.
Unfortunately, their cousins from the North, the Aumaua, are more modern and expansionist, and decide to annex their islands one after another, and plunder the resources in the name of the Rauatai nation.
Finally, the humans, represented by the Valian trading companies, also want their share of the pie.
But some of them refused to go this way and preferred the join the Príncipi sen Patrena, an organization which is halfway between Pirates of the Caribbean and the Sicilian Mafia.
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| The Tikawara tribe will give you a quest about some stolen devil's fruit and a guy made of rubber or something like that... I didn't quite follow it. |
This cultural maelstrom is very effective at generating all sorts of tensions.
Even the Huana tribe is in fact divided in several "sub-tribes", which don't even get along with each other, because they don't worship the same gods, and have their own rituals, etc.
Worse(or better lol), they even use different dialects.
Each tribe will have different specific expressions which you'll end up recognizing as you progress in the game.
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| "There are plenty of fish in the sea. But until I catch one, I'll be here playing with my rod." |
But I feel a bit conflicted about this choice though.
This game takes place in an alternative universe to ours, so does it make sense to have Italian, Spanish, and Caribbean accents? lol
Anyway, the tribal mess is worsened by religious conflicts, and you can imagine how explosive the situation becomes as humans do what they do best, act as colonists. lol
Welcome to a war of civilizations!
Meanwhile, Eothas keeps crossing slowly Deadfire land, trampling the crowds like ants.
"why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?"
You'll feel this constant tension in most dialogues and quests, forming a coherent and engaging story, and this goes for your companions as well!
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| Not only you can customize your ship, you can also get entirely new ships! |
And don't forget what kind of game you're playing!
One bad dialogue choice and some of them will sulk forever. lol
On the other hand, get on their good side and they will suck y- I mean they will respect you!
Hey, this is no Dragon Age Inquisition, alright? (God, I still have nightmares about that Minotaur...)
On a side note, the game does have some new characters, but you'll also recognize old "friends", like Eder or Aloth.
And as you can imagine, Eder's faith in Eothas will be seriously challenged throughout the game...Not mentioning Xoti, the insane priestess, worshipper of Gaun.
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| Speaking of loyalty... Here's a loyal companion for you! In the Tower Ruins in Dyrford Crossing, you can get a boar friend!🤣 When the price of pork goes up, just shoot the poor bastard. |
Not everybody will be very loyal to you, as some will join only for the thrill, or loot...
And others might have way darker hidden agendas...
I've got to admit I like their backstories a bit more than in the first game though, because the game uses a more than welcome tongue-in-cheek humor, which you'll appreciate especially after spending a few hours in Neketaka city, the biggest city in the game, and one of the most fascinating cities ever created in a RPG.
THE GREATEST CITY EVER MADE IN A RPG?
I know what you're wondering...
"Is Neketaka as gorgeous and fascinating as Athkatla in Baldur's Gate?"
YES. And even better.
(well, except I prefer Baldur's Gate, but only because I'm more interested in the story.)
It IS gorgeous, but I'll talk about this more in the graphics section.
Neketaka is the HEART of Deadfire, in which you'll be able to accumulate countless quests and lose yourself in places as fascinating as each other.
From the Brass citadel to the palaces of the Serpent's Crown, you'll discover a strong rivalry between trading families, and explore dark undergrounds filled with secrets and deadly dangers.
And it's only a little "sample" of the many tensions that plague Deadfire.
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| Tip: when you're in a dark place underground, and you can FEEL that there's some juicy treasures around... Then prepare for a fight. lol |
It has also a NPC scheduling system that changes depending on the time of day.
More than making the city look more alive, it makes it more interesting, like the developers themselves say:
"It gives us opportunities to make quests resolve in different ways based on how and when you approach them. It's more than people going to work and coming home. Guards might switch to other routines at a certain time which gives you an opportunity to do something in a way that you couldn't do normally."
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| I stopped to take pictures of these cute effeminate bards, and buy postcards. What a joyful city! Hey, where is my wallet? Oh god, it's like France... |
The city is so huge that I will certainly not complain about the gameplay time you can invest in this massive world, but I have to mention that, like "Gothic 2"(maybe a weird comparison?), it's also one of the FEW big cities. Well, let's say THE ONLY ONE.
Actually, it would be interesting to compare Neketaka with Gothic 2's city, Khorinis, but I THINK Neketaka has more things to do though. And that's quite a feat.
Also, remember how the first game was "divided" into acts?
This time, it feels more like a true "free-roaming" game, and frankly, I really appreciate this.
On a side note, I haven't found ANY map of Deadfire.
According to my researches, developers have intentionally not published a world map yet, because it leaves them room to do whatever they want in the future. Get ready for some DLCs, people! :)
THIS is the only unofficial map I found =>
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| I have found this online, but I have no idea who did it, or how. So, if you want to be credited, please leave a comment or contact us!😊👍 |
When the game starts, right after your ship sinks, you'll be able to attempt some quests in the neighboring village.
After a while, you'll be able to repair your ship, recruit a crew and stock up on food.
THEN the game really starts, when you can control your ship again.
And thanks god, they made this very easy. (I'm bad with boats for some reason. lol) Like some people mentioned, it feels a bit like controlling the boats in the Heroes of Might and Magic games.
A simple click will move the boat wherever you want, clearing the fog, unveiling new undiscovered wild islands, and more importantly, various harbors of tribal villages, or pirate camps!
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| The map is very easy to "navigate". A single click and your boat will move automatically to your desired location! I would have appreciated random monster encounters... |
With the few exceptions of areas which are locked for storyline purpose, you're pretty much on your own, free to go wherever the winds guide you!
And I like how most of the places you'll find are actually totally optional, and can be used to XP and loot, or just completion satisfaction. lol
You'll face some challenges and riddles to solve, and might end up finding some legendary equipment!
This is exactly what Pillars of Eternity needed the most, in my opinion.
The first game was too linear and depending on the main storyline.
Here, similar to one of these 3D FPS/RPG Bethesda games, you feel free to explore and accomplish quests in any order you want. (Hmm well.. That is, if you're strong enough, though... 😉)
And did I mention that one of the many side activities that you'll be able to enjoy will be naval battles?
THE NAVAL BATTLES - LET THEM SINK
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| Your ship management screen! I wanted to use my sailors as cannon ammo, but unfortunately it didn't work! Oh well, I'll use them as shark bait later instead, when we run out of foods! |
Yep! As mentioned above, there are many naval battles in Pillars of Eternity II: Deadfire!
You can even manage your ship, its equipment(sails, hull, guns), and of course the crew, which you'll be able to promote and specialize!
And make sure to have enough water and food supplies for the crew morale.
(Grog barrels bring joy! What simpletons! lol)
Unfortunately...
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| It really makes me think of the 80s game books by Ian Livingstone... I should feel nostalgic, but this mini-game just feels out of place in this game. |
Basically, it looks like a very disappointing text-based turn-based mini-game.
Using a diagram, you have to decide the orientation of the boat, move, and shoot, while taking into account the artificers skills, distance, damage potential, etc.
And the whole thing doesn't feel intuitive at all, and even less satisfying, especially when you realize that 95% of the fights will require the exact same "tactic".
This mini-game is supposedly inspired by FTL, but it's not nearly as deep, as you can imagine.
(By the way, I want to make sure that you realize I'm talking about SHIP battles. The actual BOARDING scene turns back to the traditional battle system, which is perfectly fine.)
Anyway, despite the semi-realistic battles which include shrapnel wounds, mortars and craw injury management, I'm not kidding when I say that I would appreciate a completely different system.
GOOD NEWS THOUGH: if you don't like the scripted naval combat system, you can totally skip straight to deck-on-deck fighting.
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| Once on board, the game goes back to the traditional fighting system, thanks god. |
Note!
You
can also choose to completely ignore this part of the game(good luck
avoiding other boats!), and still progress normally.(you won't be able
to upgrade your ship though!) I haven't tried though, so don't take my
word for it! lol
THE PAUSE-BASED COMBAT SYSTEM - SAME OLD, AND YET REVAMPED!
We're still dealing with the old pause-based(I'll just name it this way instead of saying pausable real-time) fighting system which was introduced by Darklands back in 1992(Come on, it does count as pause-based combat, right? And btw, did a pause-based RPG ever come out before Darklands? I didn't find anything.)
UNPOPULAR OPINION INCOMING!😅
I have always HATED this system.
When it comes to combat in a RPG, I prefer either real-time like FPS/RPG(Morrowind) or pure turn-based like Divinity Original Sin 2. The 3D Fallout games are the exceptions. he he
I won't write a whole article about it, but let's just say that pause-based combat just feels very disjointed to me, and that in order to maximize your efficiency, you feel forced to pause every second or so to queue up your next actions. The micro-management actually feels tedious compared to a SET pool of movement/action points. One of the few situations in which I think that being LIMITED actually opens more intelligent strategic choices.
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| Typical mess which you witness in EVERY pause-based RPG. lol |
The real-time combat might give the impression that we're not wasting as much time as in a traditional turn-based combat. (And God knows how long the gameplay time is in this game! So, you might want to speed things up sometimes.)
Pressing pause to give your orders to each of your companions, while preserving some limited free movement during a fight is also satisfying.
Well, Obsidian doesn't try to reinvent the wheel and keeps the fundamentals from PoE I and Tyranny.
So you'll have to time your blows and spells, placing your characters cleverly to maximize your attacks efficiency, while trying to counter or interrupt your enemy attacks!
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| "Give a man a fire and he will be warm for one night. Set a man on fire and he'll be warm for the rest of his life." |
On the other hand, one cannot deny that Obsidian tried its best to revamp the original combat system in many ways.
The cleaner combat mechanics make the game less confusing, without compromising the original game's depth.
You can have single-class or multi-class characters, with skill trees so huge that you will spend a long time deciding what to choose, crafting highly diverse characters!
Quote: "If you want to make a rogue paladin, or a druid ranger, or any sort of combination that you can come up with, you have the ability to do that."
Each class has around three/five sub-classes, and each of them provides tons of statistics for your character!
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| You'll be able to "craft" very specific characters builds thanks to the awesome "Ability Tree"! |
You'll split skills into active and passive categories, while leveling will grant points to both, to ensure you can build both trees equally.
You'll be able then to create single-class "focused" heroes, like, for example, a crazy DPS rogue build using deadly poisoned daggers.
OR, if you want, a jack of all trades(usually NOT what is recommended in such games! lol), with a VAST library of skills chosen from multiple classes AND sub-classes.
Note!
Believe it or not, in Pillars of Eternity II, you will receive XP ONLY if you have managed to obtain a
bestiary entry relating to the monster that you have killed.Also, you do not receive XP for killing regular people, since they don't have a bestiary entry.
Also, the AI has definitely been improved and your companions will make you rage way less.
They went from a single-digit IQ to a double-digit one.
Speaking of which, you can even write some basic A.I. behavior routines for them!
For example, you can make sure that when an ally suffers a poison status effect, your party’s healer will automatically perform a curative spell on him!
You can actually create a "web" of routines which, when threaded together, could even turn your party into a self-sufficient combat unit!
(The developers said that they were influenced by the A.I. settings from Dragon Age Origins!)
For those who can't be bothered with such "programming", you can always use A.I. "presets", allowing you to use a comprehensive but simpler method of controlling the A.I. behavior.
Anyway, almost everything has been improved, from the defense system to the magic that obeys
now to different pools of mana.
You'll experiment a lot to find atypical combos, let alone testing the constant avalanche of legendary items with unique properties that you'll encounter during your quest!
Finally, for those who just want to follow the story, you can play the... "story mode". lol
Actually, you STILL have to fight if you pick this mode, but your characters are strong as gods.
But I know from experience(I did it in Baldur's Gate II: Enhanced Edition once!), it can actually be interesting to play these games a second time with the story mode, just to enjoy the dialogues, beautiful scenery, and forget about the pressure of winning every fight.
It's like reading a good old gamebook of the 80s, cheating all your way through. lol
GRAPHICS - MAYBE THE MOST IMPRESSIVE 2D(with some 3D) GAME EVER MADE
As soon as you start your adventure, you notice the incredible graphics.
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| It's scary how much I want to live in this game. lol Too bad we won't have a "VR" version, obviously. ha ha |
Remember the green and UNpleasant "European" Dyrwood? (it could have been called Drywood, no? lol)
Well, now we start our adventure on the dangerous and exotic Deadfire Archipelago, a chain of islands far to the east.
Unlike what some people said though, it's nothing revolutionary.
We already saw RPGs with similar setting.
After all, we had some years ago the Risen games, looking like it took place in a pirate-themed Gothic universe.
Also, there was Two Worlds 2, a VERY underrated(and also VERY flawed) 3D RPG, whose one of the areas was taking place in what looked like medieval Japan, on a Pacific island.
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| The magnificent Poko Kohara ruins!! Maybe not the best comparison, but my first reaction when I saw this was "woooow it makes me think of the Petra archeological sites"! Looks peaceful, right? Yeah, well, look closely...😱 He's sleeping for now...😈 (btw, I decided to use this official Obsidian screenshot because it looks super cool, but it looks different in-game, obviously it's zoomed out.) |
This beautiful yet deadly promising land is begging to be explored, grabbing you by the wrist and inviting you to interact with everything, and meet as many people as possible!
And wait until you reach Neketaka...
Boxing in the isometric heavyweight category, Deadfire is a new technical achievement.
The engine has been reworked in-depth, and one of the first things you'll notice is how the lighting has been improved.
Every space looks AND feels bigger, and the parallax effects and animated backgrounds will baffle you!
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| Eren: "Aahhhh... Just peeing in the water before meeting a holy priestess. Hey, where can I wash my hands? Oh well, she won't notice anything." |
One of the biggest changes in Pillars of Eternity 2 is the VERY much appreciated dynamic weather system, bringing Deadfire to life in all its power and glory!
Quote: "The Deadfire Archipelago is this tempestuous wild land of violent storms, it seemed kind of weird to not have systems to maximize that influence".
Strong winds will bend trees and stir up environmental objects, and you'll appreciate the realistic waves of your clothes!
Just look at the dynamic water. LOOK AT IT! lol The waves crashing against the shore is still one of the best things I've ever seen in a game, I think.
Water, Fire, Wind, Earth, the four elements are GORGEOUS and very much alive in this game.
Actually, this might be the game in which I feel the most that the environment is "alive". Every scene feels "organic", unless the first game, which looked like a series of beautiful screenshots.
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| Aaaaw Harold the Talking Tree from Fallout 3 decided to relocate to Deadfire, huh? Gee, he sure let himself go... |
MUSIC - IT'S NOT FINGERING MY G-STRING
It lacks any memorable melodies.
Most tracks are made of slow-evolving monotonous sounds, and even worse, the choice of instruments is pretty poor.
In some tracks, clarinets are totally out of place, and cellos are SO overused...
Finally, even the mastering itself isn't quite pleasant to the ears.
Of course, you can always turn the volume down, but even so, I find it distracting because of the way they mastered it, pushing too much in the 500hz zone.(most annoying frequency zone to me!)
As for the themes themselves, they're depressing and not motivating at all.
One dark track or two can be appropriate in some parts of the storyline, but here, the whole OST sounds like it was written by somebody who is just tired of life.
But it's a VERY subjective thing... As I always say, "don't take my word for it"! lol
And listen for yourself =>
I find this one particularly annoying and irritating. lol
For the few people who agree with me, but who still want to listen to some nice RPG music while playing PoE II, just play Baldur's gate OST in your favorite audio player(I use Winamp since 1998 lol) while playing, it's infinitely better!
Now THAT is true RPG music!
There's not even one bad track in this fantastic OST. And don't forget the sequel too!
If you think it's still too dark and you want something a bit more magical and fitting for the island setting, then, you can try Giants: Citizen Kabuto OST.
(you can get it here if you're interested.)
One of the sadly forgotten gems of the early 2000s.
As surprising as it is, this OST totally fits Deadfire.
Anyway, you get the idea, I totally muted the music in PoE II. lol
SOUNDS - VERY CONVINCING
They're all very convincing to me, despite the few complaints I read online.
(Some people were saying that ambient sounds should have their own sliders in the options, and I agree with that!)
The abundant and diverse voices are professionally made!
Sound effects are great in general, and you'll appreciate how they're used in the scripted interactions, which feel more "alive" as a result.
Finally, the great wilderness sounds set the island atmosphere and are greatly responsible for the immersion effect.
CONCLUSION
A new classic? Oh well, we're starting to get used to Obsidian games now.
ALL of their games are classics. lol
It doesn't try to explore many new choices, but the old magic's still there, so why changing a winning team?
Besides its new "free-roam" open world, it stays true to its roots, deeply inspired by the Baldur's Gate series.
Many of the quests can be completed with either combat, or using cunningness and "talk skills", although I won't say it's as deep as "The Age of Decadence", obviously. (incredible RPG in which you can avoid the majority of fights, using your intelligence only. A bit like Deus Ex.)
Anyway, Either choice you make always benefits from the professional writing care that made the renowned California-based studio successful.
A FEW FLAWS?
There are very few flaws, which are easily excused thanks to the fascinating lore, the incredible freedom feeling and the magnificent overall direction.
I already mentioned the boring but avoidable naval battles, so I'll only mention one more flaw...
Actually, it's not even a flaw, depending on your point of view...
But let's just say that at some point in the game, after 40-50 hours of gameplay, you'll be facing a Cornelian dilemma, having to choose between some factions, causing MANY quests to be automatically cancelled.(and NOPE, you can't complete them FIRST and then choose to side with some factions...)
And everything you accomplished for the side you didn't pick is deleted from your quest log! (why??)
I assume it's a deliberate design choice to enhance replayability even further, but personally, I would have preferred to be able to complete all quests from every side.
The first games of this genre I played were Fallout 1 and 2, and I sure liked to pretend to side with EVERYBODY, only to fool all of the suckers in the end! mwa ha ha!(what? Is it just me? Oh well...)
But yeah, like I said, I also realize that some people actually love the fact that our decisions have a real weight on the story, and serious consequences on all our relations with everybody in the game.
It has never been truer in Pillars of Eternity II: Deadfire.
THE FUTURE?
Well, don't forget that the adventure won't stop there!
The developers are planning to add some DLCs, so let's cross fingers they're as high-quality as the base game!
Look at the future DLCs you'll get with the Obsidian edition!😋
RATING BOX
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VERSION TESTED: 1.0
Publisher:
Developer:
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|---|---|
| GRAPHICS: 98% | |
| Pure eye-candy graphics pushed to the maximum. It looks even better than Divinity Original Sin 2! (although DOS II is more 3D than 2D!) Actually, I'm not sure I have ever seen something as incredible as this. I'm licking my screen and I can tell you, it doesn't taste good. Don't do it, kids! |
|
| MUSIC: 57% | |
| Boring. Uninspired. And not fitting the archipelago landscapes at all. It's not even fitting the storyline in general. Most tracks are totally out of place. And I'm so tired of hearing cello and double basses/whatever in RPGs! So unoriginal! | |
| SOUNDS: 91% | |
| How could a game have such disappointing OST and such great sounds? From the realistic weapon sounds to the countless voices(either from people or monsters), this is just a constant eargasm orgy to me! The best part is the wilderness sounds though, which go in harmony with the new dynamic weather system. These two qualities combined make one of the most immersive soundscapes I've heard in a while. |
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| GAMEPLAY: 88% | |
| The new free-roam approach improves the "pace" of the game, and opens new possibilities, allowing you to explore at will without necessarily caring about the main storyline, "a la Bethesda". The messy pause-based fights won't please everybody, and naval battles were unnecessary, but the incredible depth you can customize your characters with make up for it. | |
| OVERALL RATING: 89% | |
| Built on its own legacy, it surpasses the first game in every way possible. We get to explore freely an original and exotic location, loaded with interesting people and mysterious secrets, all served by Obsidian's renown writing quality!! This is one of the best RPG experiences you'll have in 2018! |
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