#gaming: pillars of eternity

[hellafluff]

RPGs will be like. Okay, here's the the most beautiful portrait of a character we could render. And here's the goofiest fucking 3D character model you've ever seen.

[masterskywalkers]

While I feel that games like Pillars of Eternity can't really compared to Baldur's Gate 3 in terms of playstyle, I will say that Baldur's Gate 3 - like other games such as Dragon Age: Origins and Knights of the Old Republic - work well as a good introduction into the older, more strategic isometric genre.

Pillars of Eternity is a love letter to the isometric style of the 90's - 2000's, and one of the gaming inspirations it borrows from is the original Baldur's Gate games and Icewind Dale. These types of games borrowed a lot from tabletop games (Baldur's Gate is obviously a D&D game built in the Advanced Dungeons and Dragons system - or second edition, for ease.).

Isometric gaming was something that was on the way out a few years ago, and Pillars of Eternity began life as a Kickstarter project. It gained interest and, while being of a rather niche interest in the wider gaming market, sparked enough of a buzz that it woke up others who took inspiration from the isometric style and brought more games back to that style. Pillars wasn't alone in restarting this resurgence, but it damn certainly helped it.

Baldur's Gate 3, to me, is more of a return to what RPG's used to be back in the late 00's. Its gameplay is far more reminiscent to Dragon Age: Origins than it is of its original two entries - so much so that when I first spoke of BG3 to friends, I actually compared it to DA:O in the styling of it.

You have to remember that when isometric games were big in the 90's and early 00's cutscenes weren't as big a thing as they are in games now - they were there, but the technology wasn't like it is today so the cutscenes would either be filmed or have to be much shorter / or silent (think original cutscenes in Final Fantasy from entries 6-9 that had no voice acting, or old titles like the Wing Commander series - hey, didn't Mark Hamill film for those?). CRPG games had to rely on the story - both visual and through actual reading on the player's part. Baldur's Gate 3 is quite amazing to me because it gets to take influence both from its original routes through the gameplay, but it also gets the luxury of having cutscenes and showing scenes where characters can talk and interact face to face. Because of this, Baldur's Gate 3 is actually a nice introduction for a new RPG gamer to find their footing in the genre. Harder difficulties lend a strategic process that can open doors to players wanting to explore the more challenging games that isometric gaming opens (especially when BG3 introduces those legendary actions in the later part of the game on harder difficulties). The RPG genre is always evolving and changing, and we'll continue to see how it adapts as the years go on and more ways to tell a story develop and grow. Isometric gaming is just another variation of how to tell a story, just as RPG's like BG3 and DA:O and 2 are another version of the genre. I would also argue that games like Dragon Age: Inquisition are slightly different from both of what came for, as they brought with them the open-world element. In a way, Inquisition is unique to its own franchise in the way BG3 is, as it borrows pieces from its past, but grows with what's new also (even if I still feel Origins / Awakening is the strongest entry in the entire series).

So, yes. I don't really like/agree with comparing these games in accordance to gameplay and style as they are all products that reflect the differences of how the genre itself grows. Pillars was always a love letter to games of the past, whereas BG3 is a story that pushes the boundaries of what we have available to use with today's resources. RPG's will keep changing, but we'll always see those special games that come out to celebrate a different era of the genre.

[gallusneve]

AVOWED dev. Obsidian Entertainment Sapadal, The Gardener

[moon8child]

[geezmarty]

my watcher and girl aloth warmups I did recently

[trisexyual]

rb and respond with your top unromanceable video game character/s that you think should have been romanceable

[ardentlythieving]

One little thing I absolutely adore about Deadfire is how gorgeous the ingame maps are. As a map enjoyer I'm genuinely struggling to think of any I like more, it's just presented in such a clean & informative & well stylised way.

Also the info box in the top right corner is such a neat little touch, if we ever get PoE 3 I hope they keep this style.

[maturiin]

i've been playing pillars of eternity!!!!! i finally sat down and made custom portraits for my watcher zante 😁

[sotc]

i did in fact have to do everything around here

[lae-zels]

The one you gravitate towards the first time playing any cRPGs. Included Pillars of Eternity races and Divinity Original Sin ones.

[solas-backpack-mug]

[ellianes]

Once I made a whole series of art with men's hands and flowers 1 - Pasqal Haneumann (Warhammer 40k: Rogue Trader) 2 - Edér Teylecg (Pillars of Eternity) 3 - Regill Derenge (Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous) 4 - Lann (Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous) 5 - Davrin (Dragon Age: The Veilguard) 6 - Emmrich Volkarin (Dragon Age: The Veilguard) 7 - my Dark Urge elf oathbreaker Nor from Baldur's Gate 3 8 - my beloved OC from Baldur's Gate 3: chaotic good redhead half-elf fighter named Lann

[gallusneve]

AVOWED The Companions

[quenthel]

Ok so I saw some people being confused Abt Avowed, claiming that it's themes are similar to recent fantasy games, and being upset that it's not like regular (western European medieval) fantasy.... And it's crazy to me.

Like both Pillars games and Avowed too are mainly stories about colonialism. These stories focus on these themes admittedly to a fault (the gods are more stand-ins for an ideological weapon as a tool of colonialism that they are gods in a religion ppl are part of, so we don't actually see religious people in this world where gods are extremely important) but that's the main focus.

In pillars one we see the aftermath of a failed colonial project and the political and religious fallout caused by this.

In deadfire we see an ongoing colonial struggle where multiple large empires are wrestling with each other for the privilege to exploit the natural resources and the people of a less technologically developed culture.

In Avowed you see the very beginning of a colonial struggle where a large empire is setting up a large landmass inhabited by smaller fragmented communities for a potentially hostile takeover.

Like this is the political set up of the setting. It's not medieval fantasy because it's not medieval at all (there are guns...) it does not take place in a Europe looking place bc the main theme IS colonialism and colonialism never took place in western Europe.

I don't really think the themes of colonialism are something at all explored in other triple A fantasy games. At all. Much less this explicitly.

I understand the world of Eora can seem confusing bc it's dense. There are a lot of different countries and empires with various geopolitical ties to one another AND with their specific national struggles bc this is a setting that is more concerned with exploring a more "realistic" approach to fantasy politics and nation making and whatnot. Like there are no ethnostates here. There is no international one currency.

The other main theme I would point out w Avowed is that of discovering a lost culture which got destroyed by the overt ideological war machine left behind by an empire whose legacy still shapes the world. Something new and different became real in a very isolated place under very specific circumstances and precisely bc of that imperial powers destroyed it all.

For new players who are a bit puzzled by the setting I can only suggest: stop relying on your previous knowledge of what fantasy is like ( like in DND etc.) and treat this setting as a backdrop for stories that are interested in our human history and wish to reflect on it. If you abandon those pre-concieved notions it might make understanding easier. Or you might discover this type of shit is not for you and leave it at that.

Imo eora is one of the smarter and more unique fantasy settings out there, and it's existence itself is just very very cool. It's a lot smarter in it's construction and exception that most other stuff you can find out there so it's worth exploring and enjoying. Even tho Avowed is not as good as the first two pillars games and even tho it's a more expensive game, I think it's enjoyable and an overall good time.

[geezmarty]

watcher caru with some of her companions…I'm enjoying going through this game slowly but surely

[carlsdraws]

been playing PoE i love getting to be the weirdest person my companions met all day