#gaming: pillars of eternity

[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.

[trisexyual]

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

[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]

[ampleappleamble]

the pillars of eternity/silent hill 2/mouthwashing crossover event you've surely all been eagerly waiting for

[rpgchoices]

Useless rpgs recs. Videogames (not dating sims) where you play or you CAN play as a character who is wlw or mlm

Names and characters/explanations under cut (might contain minor spoilers):

Just a note, when I say romance I mean that there is actual story and plot related to it. Otehrwise for games like Fable or Skyrim (no romance) I will just write "Marry". For the romance games, a more detailed list of characters and romances can be found here.

Dragon Age Origins: You can romance Leliana (f) or Zevran (m) even with a character of their same gender

Dragon Age 2: You can romance all your companions (but Sebastian) indipendently from gender

Dragon Age Inquisition: You can romance Josephine (f) and Iron Bull (m) with any gender, and you can romance a lesbian character (Sera) or a gay character (Dorian)

Greedfall: You can romance Vasco (m) or Siora (f) with any gender

Dragon's Dogma: You can romance any character with any gender

Jade Empire: Sky (m) and Silk Fox (f) are romancable by any gender

Fable series: You can marry a character of your same gender

Skyrim: You can marry a character of your same gender

Enderal: You can romance Jasper (m) or Calia (f) as any gender

Pillars of Eternity: Deadfire: You can romance all your companions with any gender

Pendula Swing: The protagonist is canonically wlw, and you can romance male and female characetrs

Hero-U: The male protagonist can romance male characters too

Cyberpunk 2077: There are different flirts (female characters) that can be romanced by any gender, plus two full fledged romances a wlw and mlm one.

Expeditions: Viking: There is a female character (Roskva) and a male character (Ketill) who can be romanced by any gender.

Expeditions: Rome: There is a female character (Daianeira) and a male character (Caeso) who can be romanced by any gender.

Pathfinder Kingmaker: This game has multiple romances that can be romanced by characters of the same gender, mainly for wlw. Regongar is the one male character who can be romanced by any gender and also in a poly relationship with Octavia. Octavia, Kanerah, Kalikke, Nyrissa are the female characters romancable by any gender.

Pathfinder Wrath of the Righteous: Similar to Kingmaker, there are multiple characters romancable by male or female protagonists.

Rogue Trader: One male character and two female characters can be romanced by any gender.

Gamedec: Ken Zhou is the only romance option in game and can be romanced by any gender.#

Black Geyser: The romances are minimal, but there are multiple female and female characters romancable by any gender.

Always sometimes monsters (and sequel): you choose both the gender of the protagonist and the one of the romance.

Divinity Original Sin: If you play alone you control two characters who can end up in a romance (not fully written, almost subtle) indipendently from their gender.

Divinity Original Sin 2: All the companions can be romanced by any gender.

Disco Elysium: If you choose specific dialogue choices it is revealed that the protagonist (Harry) is attracted to men.

Baldur's Gate 1 and 2, enhanced edition: The enhanced edition adds Dorn and Hexxat who can be romanced by the same gender.

Baldur's Gate Siege of Dragonspear: Two romance options are not gender locked.

Baldur's Gate 3: All the companions are romancable by any gender, plus there are some more flirts/less developed romances.

Assassin's Creed Odyssey: Multiple characters through the game are not gender locked for romance.

Eternal Home Floristry: You play as a gay man.

80 Days: The protagonist (a man) is clearly in love with a man, you can also romance a male character.

The Technomancer: You play as a male character, one of your romance option is mlm.

Sorcery!: If you play as a male character you can still romance Flanker, who is also a man and is the one romance option in the game. If you play as a female character there are some dialogue choices that can establish your character as wlw.

Knight Bewitched: The protagonists are two women in love.

Dreamfall The Longest Journey: One of the protagonists (Kian) is a gay man.

Dreamfall Chapters: Kian and Saga are respectively a gay man and a pansexual woman.

Newfound Courage: The protagonist is a gay boy, but also the whole game is about being queer.

Haven: You play as a couple of lovers, who can be two women or two men.

Fallout 4: Some of the romance options are not gender locked.

Morrowind: There is a mod to romance (links of all mods here).

Solstice: Visual novel but not dating sim, you play as two characters and one of them is a gay man.

Mass Effect Trilogy: multiple companions (nb, f or m) can be romanced with any gender.

Mass Effect Andromeda: multiple companions can be romanced wtih any gender.

Hades: The protagonist (the son of Hades) can romance a male character (and enter into a poly relationship).

Icewind Dale II: mods

Icewind Dale: mod (one male character who can be romanced by a male protagonist).

GAMES I FORGOT (EDIT):

The Red String Club: you play as two gay men who are a couple.

Please keep in mind that this is the post I constantly update:

[fyeahobsidian]

Avowed Companions | Giatta and Kai

[bragganhyl]

[mossattack]

nice argument! unfortunately,

[syrupwit]

Pillars of Eternity

A HUMAN SKELETON summoned by KANA RUA has fallen in battle. SAGANI: [anguished] No! GRIEVING MOTHER: [solemn] A light has gone out. EDÉR: [with boyish sincerity] I just wish I coulda done something.

[daelkyrart]

doing an portrait of my pillars of eternity character to use in-game. which is also why hes so small lol. couldnt decide on whether the extra shading made him look worse so. have two of him

[karjalantroll]

absolute disaster

I didn't even have enough space to put everyone in the hashtags......

[jesawyer]

Were you the one who originally came up with the concept of adra in Pillars of Eternity?

Yes, but other people contributed to the idea. Adam Brennecke originally had the idea of reincarnation being a big thing in the world. Rob Nesler was making environment concepts with gravity-defying arches and we talked about the idea of some sort of growing material that was used as a mortar between the stones that was living, kind of had some physical properties like abalone shell.

At some point shortly after that I had the idea of adra as growing through the ground as pillars and being the conduits of souls across the world. I later developed the idea that living adra could be separated from the pillars and could be an ideal vessel for essence/soul energy. Kaz Aruga suggested the name "Pillars of Eternity" during our great renaming process (it was originally called Project Eternity) and I thought it fit well.

[pbandjustice]

Talking Faith & History with Josh Sawyer

Recently got the chance to sit down with @jesawyer ! We had always felt that while the history side of Pentiment had gotten a good amount of coverage, no one had really plumbed the depths of its depiction of faith. Before Pentiment & Honest Hearts, I had never seen characters with a believably-written faith. Since they were both under the supervision of Josh, we wanted to dig deep not just into these works but into the life of the person behind them. Why was it important to him to acknowledge the spiritual dimension of his characters? What kind of orange juice does he like? Find out that and more when you read / watch the above! (Link is to the transcript, the video interview is linked in there as well.)

Thanks again Josh for agreeing to interview, it was a blast!

[ampleappleamble]

🚨 Matt Mercer spotted 🚨