A couple of months ago I asked Era whether Divinity 2 could be a game for me, even if I couldn't really get into the first game. Turns out the answer: hell yes. I absolutely adore isometric RPGs, many of which I consider to be among the best games I've ever played, but for some reason I had issues with Pillars of Eternity and DOS1 - I'm not sure if I was simply not in the mood for them or if was expecting too much, but be that as it may, I've been binging Divinity 2 for the past 10 days or so and it's the first game in the genre to give me the Baldur's Gate 2 vibes.
I've been on the look-out for the next Baldur's Gate 2 for more than a decade, I kid you not. I expected Neverwinter Nights to quench my thirst, and while I did finish it + both add-ons, I believe it is common knowledge that that game was a huge step back and pretty fucking ugly on top of it. I think the next big thing was Dragon Age 1, which despite its bizarrely positive reception, was honestly not very good compared to Baldur's Gate 2. Hardly any better than NWN, if at all. Next came PoE and DOS1, both of which I would assume were a bit better, but not quite good enough either. At least not good enough for me to get past the starting area. In the meantime I finished Icewind Dale 1, which I thoroughly enjoyed, so it wasn't me who was the problem - the games just weren't good enough. I couldn't get into NWN2 or its reputable add-on because the aesthetics were so off-putting unfortunately.
Original Sin 2 got everything. Freedom, atmosphere, great combat, mystery, exploration and very good graphics and a nice art design. It's fantastic at every single department that is constitutive of an A+ iso CPRG. It rewards creativity in problem solving, whether combat or otherwise, pretty much never bores you by keeping up a very good pace, offers an outrageous amount of possible builds and party combinations (which is something that made BG2 so replayable) and makes you dive into its world with such intensity, that I oftentimes completely misjudged just how long I'd been playing.
I'm about 30h in, chapter 2, and unless this game takes a huge nosedive, DOS2 is firmly among the great modern CRPGs like New Vegas and The Witcher 3, and honestly among the best ever in its very stacked genre as well. I cannot recommend it enough - yes, it's as good as everybody says and no, if you thought the first one was a little overrated, don't worry, this one isn't.
I've been on the look-out for the next Baldur's Gate 2 for more than a decade, I kid you not. I expected Neverwinter Nights to quench my thirst, and while I did finish it + both add-ons, I believe it is common knowledge that that game was a huge step back and pretty fucking ugly on top of it. I think the next big thing was Dragon Age 1, which despite its bizarrely positive reception, was honestly not very good compared to Baldur's Gate 2. Hardly any better than NWN, if at all. Next came PoE and DOS1, both of which I would assume were a bit better, but not quite good enough either. At least not good enough for me to get past the starting area. In the meantime I finished Icewind Dale 1, which I thoroughly enjoyed, so it wasn't me who was the problem - the games just weren't good enough. I couldn't get into NWN2 or its reputable add-on because the aesthetics were so off-putting unfortunately.
Original Sin 2 got everything. Freedom, atmosphere, great combat, mystery, exploration and very good graphics and a nice art design. It's fantastic at every single department that is constitutive of an A+ iso CPRG. It rewards creativity in problem solving, whether combat or otherwise, pretty much never bores you by keeping up a very good pace, offers an outrageous amount of possible builds and party combinations (which is something that made BG2 so replayable) and makes you dive into its world with such intensity, that I oftentimes completely misjudged just how long I'd been playing.
I'm about 30h in, chapter 2, and unless this game takes a huge nosedive, DOS2 is firmly among the great modern CRPGs like New Vegas and The Witcher 3, and honestly among the best ever in its very stacked genre as well. I cannot recommend it enough - yes, it's as good as everybody says and no, if you thought the first one was a little overrated, don't worry, this one isn't.
