Divinity: Original Sin II

 PC
User Score
8.8

Generally favorable reviews- based on 2570 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 2,223 out of 2570
  2. Mixed: 165 out of 2570
  3. Negative: 182 out of 2570

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  1. SlickyVonB
    Oct 4, 2017
    3
    Game looks good. World is huge. Fun puzzles and exploration is rewarded.
    Now onto the terrible turn based combat which ruins what could have been an amazing game.
    Enemies of the same level will always outclass you in every way. They will usually have much more armor, hitpts and deal more damage. It seems like every enemy has area attacks, range attacks, teleporting and DOT effects.    Game looks good. World is huge. Fun puzzles and exploration is rewarded.
    Now onto the terrible turn based combat which ruins what could have been an amazing game.
    Enemies of the same level will always outclass you in every way. They will usually have much more armor, hitpts and deal more damage. It seems like every enemy has area attacks, range attacks, teleporting and DOT effects. In a game with so many "classes" many skills are similar to others but just have different elemental damage. They all kind of end up being the same for the most part.
    You will be clinging to dear life near the end of most fights. Win and your armor and magic protection automatically spring back. While click on a simple bedroll and all your party is healed. Gone is the strategic planning in how to use your heals/skills/spells like in older D&D rpgs and Pillars of Eternity because they all have a turn counter. Gone is day and night cycles with resting and camping, rest and food meaning something.
    Many times enemies can hit you with range attacks but you can't hit them back. This is especially troublesome on stairs. Sometimes an archer can hit an enemy one turn and the next they can't but nobody moved. And no not due to smoke. Yeah smoke it annoying too. An enemy can be one square away but untargetable due to a square of smoke like it's a wall.
    Speaking of annoying, every single battlefield is always littered with fire, oil, poison, smoke, ice and anything else you can think of. Now this could have been a super cool way to create a dynamic tactical battleground, but since nearly every spells has splash effects that create these obstacles it gets out of control fast.
    Speaking of tactical. Your tactics are easily ruined when nearly every single enemy has a type of teleportation skill. There's no way to pin them or hold them down except by spamming knockdown, stun like effects to cancel one of their turns. You can't just strategically box them in.
    Strange that so many spells that would seem high level powered spells are available at level 2 like teleportation and resurrection. A party member dying should be such a rare thing (if you are playing against normal mobs at your level on average difficulty) but OS2 gives you so many resurrection scrolls and even gives you a way to craft them that death is common place and actually trivial. I don't even think there is a penalty for death... that's how you know the devs planned to kill you often.
    Crafting is fun at first but quickly falls behind what you get as loot. Then again I tried to discover things on my own with trying ingredients at random and finding books and didn't rush to a wiki for help.
    The quest log is a mess and not really good at helping you find the right one. No level # so you won't find out it's unbeatable until you reach that one fight... that's why we were given a retreat cop out to take us to the last waypoint, Sometimes quests have markers on the map, sometimes not. Sometimes the log tells you were to go next if you forgot. Sometimes not.
    One positive is that this game gives you free respecs for your character after you finish the first chapter. Why? Because you can choose attributes and skills so poorly that the game will be close to unplayable. Another example of poor balance.
    Finally. There are only 6 playable characters with stories. I found this kind of weak compared to similar strategy RPGs and your party maxes out at 4. Oh, and guess what? Due to one skill a solo character with no party can be just as powerful as a team of 4. If that's not unbalanced, I don't know what is.    … Expand
  2. Robobob
    Dec 17, 2017
    4
    I'm been a fan of the RPG genre for a few decades now and though this game is beautiful with some fun additions to those type of game, I can't agree with the often-heard declaration of this game being the best RPG of all time. In fact, I have quite a few issues with this game.
    But first I'll start with what I liked. The environment is beautiful and fun to explore. Exploration and the    I'm been a fan of the RPG genre for a few decades now and though this game is beautiful with some fun additions to those type of game, I can't agree with the often-heard declaration of this game being the best RPG of all time. In fact, I have quite a few issues with this game.
    But first I'll start with what I liked. The environment is beautiful and fun to explore. Exploration and the discovery of secrets was the best part of the game for me. The unique characters provided are fun and interesting and each has unique skills that make basic remedial task of the game easier. Like the skeleton being able to switch to any race or the lizard being able to dig up treasure. The dialog trees are deep and thorough and involve many skills and abilities to advance in dialog which is cool. The voice acting is also great and adds to the believability of these characters. Your max party size is 4, and with 6 total unique characters each play through will be different.
    Speaking of party size, I found the max size small compared to type of opposition you will face in the game. I though it would increase over the game but after 50 hours of play, it did not. You will nearly always be fighting enemies far numerous than you and most will also be of an equivalent or higher level. The old trick of doing every extra mission to advanced further in experience by later levels didn’t seem to work very well in this game. At least that’s what I noticed by level 8 or 9. Even enemies of equal levels have far more hit points and armor than any of your character could have at a similar level. Well, it seems I’ve moved into the bad territory so here goes…
    The major problem I have with this game is the main problem I had with X-Com 2. It takes a game that should mostly be tactical and destroys any tactics you might have. Think you can take your fighter tank to pin down a couple melee fighters so your range attacker can shoot from afar? Nope. Every enemy has some type of teleportation effect that can move to your archer or magic user unimpeded. Even by level 3. It’s funny because I mention classes but there are not really any major class differences in this game. Every character can multi-class so every fighter can use range attacks, area of attacks, teleport and so on. When everyone is special no one is special. Bu-bye classes.
    The addition of destructible and dynamic battlefields is, at first, genius but it is taken way too far in this game. I liked how the game made use of seemingly trivial elemental effects, like rain and fog to change the battlefield. But when barrels of fire and oil are literally everywhere on the map (like in the middle of a forest), and every single range spell also has an area of effect, the battlefield gets littered with so much damage-over-time debris that each character can’t take a step without taking more damage. It’s pretty laughable at times. I guess that’s why there are so many teleport abilities, especially for enemies.
    This game doesn’t start out on level 1 and work to 20. It starts out at level 10 and calls it level 1 or 2. You are almost immediately introduced to resurrection scrolls and a way to craft them. That’s how often party members will be dying so there really is no penalty for it. A party member death should be a big deal in a game so devoted to story like this but it is treated as trivial and common place. Also, most spells do large amounts of area damage over time. Long gone are the days of level 1 magic missile being simple direct damage.
    You can screw up a build so bad for a character that they are almost unplayable. That’s why respecs are free by the end of the first act. A sign of poor design, in my opinion. Also, a sign of poor design is that a character can have just one ability that makes them as powerful as a team of 4. That’s so a couple buddies can play online and feel uber powerful without a full party needed. Makes me think this game is geared more for the multiplayer experienced instead of single player.
    Because this game has instant heal outside of battle with the bedrolls, battle difficulty is ramped to 100 to make things interesting. But that means they are excessively long and drawn out when same level enemies are far better equipped than you. And this is my biggest complaint with the game. The battles are so lengthy that you will need to dedicate hundreds and hundreds of hours to complete this game. That might be fine for some people. I just didn’t find myself liking this game enough to punish myself for that long.    … Expand
  3. HonestCritic198
    Sep 15, 2017
    4
    Another overrated isometric rpg that tries to cash in on nostalgia. The original was a very mediocre game. It was very slow, with a stupid and boring story, and combat which was tedious and grindy. The sequel fixes nothing except better graphics and some better writting.

    This game appeals to a vocal minority of neckbeard nerds who think the apex of rpg gaming is what they played when    Another overrated isometric rpg that tries to cash in on nostalgia. The original was a very mediocre game. It was very slow, with a stupid and boring story, and combat which was tedious and grindy. The sequel fixes nothing except better graphics and some better writting.

    This game appeals to a vocal minority of neckbeard nerds who think the apex of rpg gaming is what they played when they were teens. Thankfuly this niche is shrinking so games like these will dissappear eventually.

    If you want a good rpg, play Witcher 3. Avoid this unless you want to waste your life on reliving your childhood.    … Expand
  4. albertpross
    Sep 25, 2017
    1
    This game should be called F8: Original Reload II. --- There are a half dozen fights in the first part of the game that you literally cannot win for several hours. Every single fight is a boss fight that you stand little chance of winning without reload-enabled pre-planning or a weakling; no in between. --- In any other business we would call people who make us constantly repeatThis game should be called F8: Original Reload II. --- There are a half dozen fights in the first part of the game that you literally cannot win for several hours. Every single fight is a boss fight that you stand little chance of winning without reload-enabled pre-planning or a weakling; no in between. --- In any other business we would call people who make us constantly repeat monotonous tasks **** (or bosses). --- These guys punish exploration, swarm you with boss battles or enemies that may as well be grass and reward you for gaming the reload system. --- And people applaud them because they're so hungry for a challenge that they can't tell the difference between a well-designed game and trolling developers. Quit encouraging them! --- Dialogue, dialogue, loot, loot, death, same dialogue, same dialogue, same loot, same loot, death. Repeat three times per fight. --- Oh you took a wrong turn? Wanted to explore did you? Once again, there just happens to be high level mobs around every corner. Get ready to reload so you can beat them (maybe). Fun! Because that's what makes a game enjoyable after all, not exploration, not story, not dynamic combat; reloading. --- I give it a solid 1/10 for the excellent loading screen art. I give it's fans a 2/10 mostly because I feel sorry for them. Poor hopeless fools... Enjoy pounding your F8 keys suckers.… Expand
  5. Deaden
    May 28, 2020
    1
    Another over-hyped and overrated game with bad game play mechanics. It's ultra boring and it's not a true RPG. Combats are taking about 1-2 hours after you show up in Driftwood. Save and load every combats to find right strategy but almost every enemy are in the game is over countering you. There is some specifics builds makes you god which is against true RPG rules. On the other handAnother over-hyped and overrated game with bad game play mechanics. It's ultra boring and it's not a true RPG. Combats are taking about 1-2 hours after you show up in Driftwood. Save and load every combats to find right strategy but almost every enemy are in the game is over countering you. There is some specifics builds makes you god which is against true RPG rules. On the other hand every class should be viable but not in this game. Shield and sword looool it's waste of time. There is no tanking in this game. Give your shields to your mage which makes better choice lol. I'm not mentioning about decaying sh*te. Also there is not having alignments rolls neither. What kind of a role play game is this? I guess people don't have any idea how turn-based RPGs should be. Or many of these votes are faked.

    I have many things to say this garbage game which is pretending as a RPG but I will hold short. It's total b**sh*te. It's ok at least I paid what this game was deserving after bought with a nice discount. Otherwise it's just a time waste gadget while I couldn't find any good RPG games in these quarantine days.

    Note: Also I see mods allowed in this game and I got it. Modders always fix the game designers' mess rite! But somehow they prevent to get achievement if you use mods even they let you keep in the name of gift packs. lol, my brain is burning in the name of their stupidity ideology. Who cares, they got lot's of money from this scam game which named as Turn-pained RPG.    … Expand
  6. Boredgamer98
    May 13, 2021
    4
    This game starts out fun, but quickly turns into a game where every combat encounter feels like an ambush. You walk into a room and 6 enemies spawn out of no where. It also feels like your playing with a cheating DM. I gave up when during a fight a warrior who should know no spells used a teleport spell and 1 shot my mage. I talk to a lady, she summons 10 minions from no where and theyThis game starts out fun, but quickly turns into a game where every combat encounter feels like an ambush. You walk into a room and 6 enemies spawn out of no where. It also feels like your playing with a cheating DM. I gave up when during a fight a warrior who should know no spells used a teleport spell and 1 shot my mage. I talk to a lady, she summons 10 minions from no where and they jump my party. Walk into a room the enemies jump you. You don't even have time you place your party, so that leads to the enemy hitting you with aoe attacks while you're still clumped up while they are always spaced out and in proper position. The boss is not hard, the hard part is the 5 archers hiding behind the boss.… Expand
  7. Rakshasa
    Jul 8, 2020
    3
    I am an rpg player since 1990s since Elder Scrolls or Neverwinter Nights. As to sumnarize in one sentence the game is not designed for exploration or fun - it is designed to make you angry.
    I am in the last act - city of Arx. So this means game made me play. You play to see what is gonna happen. Every more minute you spend on this game you encounter a more absurd status. You try to say    I am an rpg player since 1990s since Elder Scrolls or Neverwinter Nights. As to sumnarize in one sentence the game is not designed for exploration or fun - it is designed to make you angry.
    I am in the last act - city of Arx. So this means game made me play. You play to see what is gonna happen. Every more minute you spend on this game you encounter a more absurd status. You try to say yourself - Oh that is a puzzle or hard try - No no no. I do 90% of quests and I don’t look through internet I and seemed to pass the Nameless Isle at level 17. Nooo you should be a soldier and do all minor quests and pass at Level 19 to be in relief. Good that I am a veteran player and beat monsters through the city. Ok then is it enough ? No you have assassins as you killed the advocate. There are undying cursed skeletons- killed in 45 minutes. There are spiders spreading death fog. Is this difficulty ? Is this fun ? Challenge ? No this is **** Please stop your Trolling style when Baldurs Gate 3. Items skills and scrolls and so on. Please try to make everything begin with magic missile or so. This game is not bad but really annoying. You need to be calm or a money earning streamer or a young gamer so you give it 9-10.
    So linear gaming. In a map you have to follow a path. Otherwise there is a warning - enemies stronger than you. As I said instead of rewarding for 90% quest completion they punish you for not doing the 10% remaining so I killed people in houses to get quickly to Level 18 for example. You walk beside lava but character walks on it. You are 1 m from an enemy but path is interrupted or target invalid. You teleport to a place where you can jump down easily. Be ready Gooo Fighting in the middle of fire. Kill win and kill to encounter more absurd and harder. Kill easy and say I did it but after an area they put deathfog. If you stay high you are the winner. They say themselves an Open World game. They should say - Follow a Path Pain in the ass - Rpg Tactical ?! Oil Barrel RPG made by Trolls. Let me repeat I am at Arx. My dying hours for this linear absurdity.    … Expand
  8. Ordnik
    May 6, 2021
    2
    Pros:
    -Good graphics
    -Nice musics. -Good detailed modeling. -Most dialogues are fun. -Good voice acting. Cons: -Story ongoing is really slow and boring. -Even a small battle taking too much time. -Some characters are boring. -When a companion dies, he/she never comes back without resurrection scrolls. So you have to use mod but that will disable achievements. -Menu UI isn't    Pros:
    -Good graphics
    -Nice musics.
    -Good detailed modeling.
    -Most dialogues are fun.
    -Good voice acting.

    Cons:
    -Story ongoing is really slow and boring.
    -Even a small battle taking too much time.
    -Some characters are boring.
    -When a companion dies, he/she never comes back without resurrection scrolls. So you have to use mod but that will disable achievements.
    -Menu UI isn't obvious, hard to find quests.    … Expand
  9. Kjaerhus
    Mar 30, 2021
    4
    Like with so many other Indie/Kickstarter games there has been a lot of hype around this game, but had it been released by a large company, people would have been a lot more critical.

    The graphics and music are the high points of this game. Mechanics are clunky though, the story not exactly captivating and there is a lot of primitive implementations that you would not see in a triple-A    Like with so many other Indie/Kickstarter games there has been a lot of hype around this game, but had it been released by a large company, people would have been a lot more critical.

    The graphics and music are the high points of this game. Mechanics are clunky though, the story not exactly captivating and there is a lot of primitive implementations that you would not see in a triple-A game (try reading a book for instance). I am sure a lot of people have enjoyed this game a lot, but I believe that most people will be disappointed. I personally found it pretty and utterly boring.    … Expand
  10. cruccolo
    Aug 29, 2020
    4
    The story is predictable (Jesus saving the World). The inventory is poorly manageable: no search button, lots of junk. The mess continues during the fights: every combat area is a mess of flammable surfaces, that in theory should provide depth and strategical complexity to the battle. In fact, since every single enemy can teleport, the fight is a random chaos, where everything is on flameThe story is predictable (Jesus saving the World). The inventory is poorly manageable: no search button, lots of junk. The mess continues during the fights: every combat area is a mess of flammable surfaces, that in theory should provide depth and strategical complexity to the battle. In fact, since every single enemy can teleport, the fight is a random chaos, where everything is on flame after a few seconds. Mobs cheat by teleporting everywhere, nullifying every strategy. Forget about tanks. The only viable tactic is building a solo character with the Lone Wolf perk. Of course you have to respec often, since the game is designed to have only a few viable builds.
    In short, if you are looking for a good isometric RPG, go for Pillars of Eternity 1/2.    … Expand
  11. Steyraus
    May 22, 2021
    1
    Boring monotenous trash. Fun for a few hours then becomes a slow redious grind. That fact this game has high scores either means theirs alot of people that quit early or have no lives and meatloaf for brains. Watching paint dry is more stimulating than this " game"
  12. Gadlajk
    Aug 9, 2019
    3
    How many hours does it take for this game to get any interesting? Way too many, I felt very sleepy after 3 hours of this game.
  13. LazieGamer
    May 11, 2020
    3
    Don't believe the hype. This game had potential but quickly falls into tropes of being simplified and boringly repetitive just so consoles can also play the game. This game has a few moments of enjoyment make no mistake. However rated it as high as BG2 and higher than other amazing games is simply just hot hair and puff. There is no real depth here.
  14. Feorh
    Mar 25, 2021
    3
    I've tried it many time. I really waned to like it but the game's just broken.
  15. quake2th
    Mar 3, 2021
    2
    DO NOT BUY THIS GAME! IT'S AS BAD AS IT CAN BE

    The high score reviews are obviously fake, due to the massive marketing campaign this game had. The game is BAD, BAD BAD. Everything in the game is broken, literally everything. Looks like an indie game made in spare time. Right at the beginning, you encounter enemies that you can't avoid that are 10+ levels above you, they one-shot    DO NOT BUY THIS GAME! IT'S AS BAD AS IT CAN BE

    The high score reviews are obviously fake, due to the massive marketing campaign this game had. The game is BAD, BAD BAD.

    Everything in the game is broken, literally everything. Looks like an indie game made in spare time.

    Right at the beginning, you encounter enemies that you can't avoid that are 10+ levels above you, they one-shot you over and over, YOU CAN'T DO ANYTHING. The game is simply impossible to play without mods and cheats. Read forums, 90% of the answer are "I just used mod xyz to remove that broken feature". ARE YOU FU** KIDDING ME???

    EVERY SINGLE ENEMY in the game will cast a fire spell that sets everything on fire and you're dead within a few turns. EVERY SINGLE ENEMY has tens of action points, while you have 3 or 4. Again, you're forced to use mods that increase your action points (they're so much required to play, that THEY ARE INCLUDED IN THE GAME BY DEFAULT!). It makes no sense.

    I REPEAT, DO NOT BUY.    … Expand
  16. psylife
    Sep 28, 2018
    4
    The combat mechanics are centered around the interaction between elemental magics and environmental opportunities; Cast a thundering bolt on a puddle of water and all the enemies that happen to be standing there will get electrocuted and eventually end-up losing their turn because of that specific status effect.

    The turn-based system gives you the time to reflect upon your next move and    The combat mechanics are centered around the interaction between elemental magics and environmental opportunities; Cast a thundering bolt on a puddle of water and all the enemies that happen to be standing there will get electrocuted and eventually end-up losing their turn because of that specific status effect.

    The turn-based system gives you the time to reflect upon your next move and plot tactics. Each characters possess two types of armor; One armor protects from 'magic and elemental' damage and the other protects from 'physical' damage; This system is interesting in the sense that it forces the player to balance its party between characters that deal elemental damage and the ones that specialize in dealing damage to the physical armor.

    Unfortunately, none of that ever amounts to a truly satisfying combat experience, since the sheer chaos and unpredictability of the various situations means that nothing really ever goes according to plan. There is also a lot of redundancy across the various abilities, and a general sense that there is just too much on offer for the player to develop a proper level of confidence within a single play-through.

    It doesn't help, that across my play-through, every enemy I have encountered happened to be systematically 3-4 levels above mine and could eliminate my party members in a single shot. This has been a real source of frustration.

    The fact of the matter is that it just never really felt about smart tactical decisions, but more about mastering the art of save scumming, circumventing, and grinding. The game has fairly unoriginal story, and uninteresting characters. The audio-visuals are repetitive and ultimately uninspiring. For all its many merits, this is a definite let down.

    Play Darkest Dungeon instead.    … Expand
  17. TucoMerc
    Jan 26, 2019
    3
    Total unbalanced turd of a game. Either impossible AF or easy AF. Disgusting. Only conversations are fun, balance is in the toilet. Don't buy this game unless you want to loose endless hours reloading old savegames and watch your team getting steamrolled by everything, everywhere.
  18. Demerian
    Oct 2, 2020
    0
    Frustrating High-level areas that destroy the concept of "exploration", and paradoxal answers available for the players (You can be lovely once, then incredibly cruel a few seconds later). That's all what bugs me about this game because otherwise, the rest is a birthday cake: delicious, made with love, with something special you can't put your fingers on, and some bonus on top you can'tFrustrating High-level areas that destroy the concept of "exploration", and paradoxal answers available for the players (You can be lovely once, then incredibly cruel a few seconds later). That's all what bugs me about this game because otherwise, the rest is a birthday cake: delicious, made with love, with something special you can't put your fingers on, and some bonus on top you can't refuse.
    Well balanced gameplay, just enough time to finish it, a nice view of the Monomyth, and really good writen characters. The tabletop RPG-player inside me is tearing, and my heart torned to shater... it is perfect.
    ... and I really wasn't a big fan of Turn-based gameplay. Well played, Larian, well played.    … Expand
  19. kiki78
    Jul 20, 2018
    4
    This game has serious flaw - or two. STUPID itemization, and omg level scaling.
    Leading to constant gear millthread, and forcing you to pick encounters and grab xp, to beat others. And that is leading to being overleveled in the end. Which makes everything super easy. One level means average about being 30perc stronger in damage and health defense as well.
    Super hard fights on fort joy,    This game has serious flaw - or two. STUPID itemization, and omg level scaling.
    Leading to constant gear millthread, and forcing you to pick encounters and grab xp, to beat others. And that is leading to being overleveled in the end. Which makes everything super easy. One level means average about being 30perc stronger in damage and health defense as well.
    Super hard fights on fort joy, houndmaster etc, and then (if you - well you have to - follow path picking good fights and getting xp) everything gets easier, all only depending on gear. And shopping with rng nonsenses, because every quest item reward or unique is level lower = trash.
    Final fight on Tactician took 3 spells from my main necro girl, at level 21. WTH design ideas are this????
    BTW... this is proven by people around writing, that combat is challenging, only if you dont do completionist playthrough. I do (somewhat trying to rp, but SADLY its quite limited in D:OS games, just pushing you on railroad).
    Final fight at lvl 19 must be hell. This level differencies are extreme, and stupid.
    Two playthroughs one before year, now another, twice disgusted in the end. It could have been so cool rpg... sigh.
    Fort joy 9.5/10, reapers coast 7.5/10, arx 2/10
    Wish larian avoided this gear **** rng crap, and uber number bloat level scaling as well. Mods solve it slightly, but break other things...

    I love characters, Lohse is amazing etc, but larian simply cant do normal rpg. Instead we get this diablo rng nonsense, and uber bloating numbers on screen, no joy out of fort joy... Roleplaying sadly is almost non existent, everything leads to same outcome, all one railroad.

    For hardcore rpg fan, this game is so promising from start, and so dissapointing later on...    … Expand
  20. FunkyGodzilla
    Mar 31, 2020
    1
    Firstly I just want to start by saying I'm posting here because Steam definitely vultures negative reviews of the game, I've had two reviews randomly removed with no message or notification at all, they contained no profanity. Now I cannot even post a review on steam. They definitely are biased and try to guard their "overwhelmingly positive" rating.
    I feel like the player choice that    Firstly I just want to start by saying I'm posting here because Steam definitely vultures negative reviews of the game, I've had two reviews randomly removed with no message or notification at all, they contained no profanity. Now I cannot even post a review on steam. They definitely are biased and try to guard their "overwhelmingly positive" rating.
    I feel like the player choice that people rant and rave about is still actually extremely superficial and introduces more tedium than excitement into a game that is at its core a turn based combat rpg. High magic- and you definitely have to play that way, you want a party of sword and shield bruiser knights? you can't. you just can't play the way you want, magic is way too powerful comparatively, why bash a guy with your sword when you can blow up the screen with some elemental attack. Random oil drums scattered around the map probably the biggest cliche in gaming. Gimmicks on top of gimmicks, Oh wow you can heat water... then electrocute the vapor... so sick bro. I want good combat at it's core not distractions. All of this is distracting you from the fact that the gearing and combat is actually just not very good. The exploration aspect is actually pretty good I have to admit. But that said, it's good for certain types of people that kind of find what they are looking for in the first place. Because at the end of the day, the dev did have to add all the choices, and no there is not infinite choices or ways to play, in a given situation you might be able to deal with it in 3, 4, MAYBE 5 ways? if you simplify all the ways you realize there is not as much choice as it seems while you wade through the slog of carrying around a bunch of junk, paperclips, string thinking "Oh it's a super rich RPG some random beggar guy with a beard might ask me for these stupid junk items and reward me" meanwhile you just waste your time with the "super rich" rpg managing a bunch of junk that ultimately doesn't add to the actual core of the game which is the combat which again isn't that good.    … Expand
  21. viroodiem
    Dec 31, 2017
    1
    It is basically 2018. Even if the game has good quality content and a good amount of it, It is at its core an RPG. A genre about immersion into a "role" you are playing. That immersion, its most crucially vital part is utterly devastated when it comes in the way of the technological advancement of 1999.

    Isometric was a "trick" to produce a near 3D world, without requiring the raw    It is basically 2018. Even if the game has good quality content and a good amount of it, It is at its core an RPG. A genre about immersion into a "role" you are playing. That immersion, its most crucially vital part is utterly devastated when it comes in the way of the technological advancement of 1999.

    Isometric was a "trick" to produce a near 3D world, without requiring the raw horsepower to accomplish 3D properly.

    So why on earth are we still paying money for isometric trickery when any single goofball with Unity can produce far more immersive RPGs in proper FPS (or at the very least the halfa sed compromise of TPP.

    I am not one who is all about bleeding edge graphics. I can readily tolerate reasonably old games. I also get it from a developer standpoint. If you do not have to spend so much time on the exorbitant amounts of manpower and hours to produce something up to today's visual standard, you can chose to go with lower resolution graphics which would hypothetically allow you to focus more on the story telling.

    But again, this is an RPG and even the greatest story ever told is a waste if it actively encourages readers not to continue reading. The same is true of ALL Isometric, stop and go "gridlock simulators" that inexplicably have been having a second golden age as of late.

    Knowing that the people behind this production put their all into this production I cannot simply give this a zero. However I have played games like Dragon Commander and Ego Draconis especially, that proves there is absolutely no excuse for pushing this antiquated tech of trickery when a fully 3D production did not suffer from narrative hiccups that this poor design choice is supposed to be trying to circumvent. With how much isometric ruins the game play, honestly 1 was being quite generous.

    #nomoreiso    … Expand
  22. Mercestes
    Mar 8, 2019
    0
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. The story, lore, characters, and base design of the game is good...but then somebody made so many bad decisions with it that it pretty much ruins the entire game.

    NPC (As an undead): AHH! An abomination! Die!!!
    Same NPC (while hiding your undead nature): Ah, I knew you were undead all along, it's cool fam. Wanna chill?
    Zaleskar: If you weren't absolute gutter-trash you wouldn't have to hide the fact that you're undead, you know.

    PCs in combat, who supposedly have no idea that you are undead: "I don't know why I'm casting massive amounts of long range healing spells on you, it just feels right!"

    Undead: *Is obviously undead*
    Undead in a hat: *Is also obviously undead, but no one seems to notice.*

    DoSII Developers: We have 97 types of environments!!!
    With enough fire, all of them become fire.

    You: *spends three hours researching and tweaking the perfect main character*
    Fane in the first five minutes of the game: I predate the gods, and you are lowly gutter trash.

    Magisters: *treats you like a slave*
    Red Prince: *treats you like a rejected slave*
    Fane: *treats you like gutter trash*
    Actual gods: "You are the chosen one!!!!"

    You (To Zaleskar): Hello, my name is...
    Ifan (interrupting): Wait, I have business with this bloke
    You: *waves him ahead and tries again): Hello! My name i...
    Sebille (interrupt): Wait, I have business with this bloke...
    You: For the love of...Fine! Go ahead!

    You (fighting with a sharp piece of metal tied to a stick): *kills an NPC in full magister armor dual-wielding axes literally glowing with arcane power*
    Also you: They only thing they had of use was this piece of lint and a string I snagged from their sock.

    You (surrounded by a dozen people or so): Yea...I'm alone.

    You get a bless spell that tells you it can remove curses, but it can't remove the curses from cursed items.

    There are also so many prerequisite feats and stats you have to get on your main character that just don't work right on your party members, like persuasion and Pet Pal, that your main character ends up gimped with a ton of social status unless you plan on simply murdering everything in your path.

    The rules are incredibly unclear as to what heals undead and what doesn't. Necromancy and necromancy skills "heal" vitality and seem to work normally, but other skills that "heal vitality" do damage instead, with no clear indicator as to why.

    Likewise, decaying says it causes "healing" to do damage, but that effects anything that makes your HP go up it seems, including "damage" from poison and necromancy on undead characters, which makes zero sense sense it specifies "healing potions and healing spells."

    Cursed surfaces are the Devii, happen often, and have no clear way of removing them.

    Most of the monsters can 1-shot your entire party so most of the game-play is centered around min-maxed "broken" builds and cheese game play.

    There is so much deus ex machina in this game that your involvement is largely unnecessary. The writers break pretty much every rule of RPG etiquette.

    Half my time playing is spent alt-tabbed into an Internet browser trying to figure out WTF I'm supposed to be doing.    … Expand
  23. Sesshomurai
    Feb 9, 2018
    1
    I wanted to like this game. Its pretty to look at. Has all the basic systems in place but its not fun. Let me get into why.

    I've been playing these games since they were invented. Managing the fun factor for someone who bought the game is important. Games can be hard and still fun. This game is not just hard. Its absurd. There's no escalating challenge. Right from the get go any one    I wanted to like this game. Its pretty to look at. Has all the basic systems in place but its not fun. Let me get into why.

    I've been playing these games since they were invented. Managing the fun factor for someone who bought the game is important. Games can be hard and still fun.
    This game is not just hard. Its absurd. There's no escalating challenge. Right from the get go any one single thing can kill you in two hits. For being stuck on an island with an alleged magic collar around your neck to prevent......ummmm.....magic, you can cast all kinds of crazy spells. Illogical!!
    Second. Any enemy you encounter, doesnt matter if you outnumber them 4-1 you will be on fire, blind and slowed before YOU EVEN GET TO MOVE! The absurdity of that is beyond comprehension. The rest of the combat mechanics are just there to band aid over this ridiculous imbalance.

    Now you might be thinking you can use your human brain to devise some smart tactics. Nope. They built in a failsafe to keep you from outsmarting an enemy. They all have teleport and invisibility. Laughing yet?

    Finally the self indulgent and excessively narcissistic narration is both a nuisance and unecessary. The wordy dialogue is a muddy grind through choices you wonder if they have any effect.

    The quest system is a confusing mess. You never know if you are supposed to do something or not. They are filled with moral conundrums. Not articulate and meaningful choices. One mission simply tells you to go kill some elf. Of course you have no chance at defeating said elf but why even bother?

    I'm all for a little vague storylines in the beginning but there's a difference between mysterious and illogical.    … Expand
  24. rusty_drow
    Sep 28, 2018
    4
    Repetitive combat. "Samey" skills and traits. Repetitive tactics. Arena-like environment for fights (looks very unnatural and cheap). Areas split in to character levels, like in MMO game. No use of telekinesis and other stuff that makes DOS1 great (but those feats are still in the char sheet, waiting to waste your skill points). Poor role-playing options (tags and more tags only).Repetitive combat. "Samey" skills and traits. Repetitive tactics. Arena-like environment for fights (looks very unnatural and cheap). Areas split in to character levels, like in MMO game. No use of telekinesis and other stuff that makes DOS1 great (but those feats are still in the char sheet, waiting to waste your skill points). Poor role-playing options (tags and more tags only). Unmemorable, forgettable and extremely dull story.

    What's good is music (personally i like it) and nice graphics.

    DOS1 8/10
    DOS2 4/10

    Very disappointed.    … Expand
  25. deepelemblues
    Dec 9, 2018
    3
    The combat in this game is extremely badly designed. Enemies come in two categories: 1. They have far too many action points and abilities, or 2. They are laughably easy to destroy. Fights come in three flavors: laughably easy, endlessly stunlocked (or the equivalent), and actually fun. The last category happens rarely. Since the rest of it is a very standard, conventional "isometric"The combat in this game is extremely badly designed. Enemies come in two categories: 1. They have far too many action points and abilities, or 2. They are laughably easy to destroy. Fights come in three flavors: laughably easy, endlessly stunlocked (or the equivalent), and actually fun. The last category happens rarely. Since the rest of it is a very standard, conventional "isometric" CRPG, the combat is what needed to carry this game... and it didn't, not compared to other recent CRPGs of the same style.

    Also, the "sex scenes..." shudder. Voyeur narrator narrating your decision tree sex life. Weird.    … Expand
  26. argo2001
    May 20, 2018
    0
    Очередное переоценённое дерьмо.
    Тот же бредово-пародийный мир, те же бесконечные разговоры с животными.
    Мне хватило взрывающихся черепах, чтобы понять, что игра редкое дерьмо, но я затупил и продолжил играть в этот отстой дальше. Разработчиками плевать на логику, плевать вообще на всё, кроме того, чтобы сделать максимально сложно, тупо и неудобно. И вот эта дрянь хорошо продалась, а    Очередное переоценённое дерьмо.
    Тот же бредово-пародийный мир, те же бесконечные разговоры с животными.
    Мне хватило взрывающихся черепах, чтобы понять, что игра редкое дерьмо, но я затупил и продолжил играть в этот отстой дальше.
    Разработчиками плевать на логику, плевать вообще на всё, кроме того, чтобы сделать максимально сложно, тупо и неудобно.
    И вот эта дрянь хорошо продалась, а великолепная Tyranny нет?!
    Очередное доказательство, что не лутбоксы виноваты в проблемах современных игр, а склонность игроков жрать и нахваливать полнейшее дерьмище в стиле Divinity Original Sin 2.
    Одна из самых мерзких и непродуманных игр в истории, для меня это худшая игра наверное даже не года, а многих лет.
    Сюжет дерьмо и присутствует только для формы, нарратив - хуже не бывает, боёвка - дичайшее задротство для отбитых хардкорщиков, торговля и инвентарь - просто образец того, как сделать максимально неудобно. Здесь отвратительно всё - даже обычные вещи нельзя сделать без какого-то мучения или придурковатого сюрприза от разработчиков.
    0 из 10 и звание АБСОЛЮТНОГО ОТСТОЯ ДЕСЯТИЛЕТИЯ - вот чего заслуживает даный высер, потому, что игрой назвать это поделие невозможно.
    Это недоразумение даже рядом недостойно стоять с Pillars of Eternity и Tyranny, не говоря уже о великом Baldur`s Gate 2 и Dragon Age Origins. Оно недостойно называться классической РПГ.    … Expand
  27. LDGMDeniel
    Jan 23, 2019
    3
    Game is slow and boring. Level design is bad, story not much good either, new battle system is horrible, dialogs whole new level worse without your party member being able to influence the outcome.
  28. PHDIKOULAS
    Nov 6, 2019
    0
    heres a 0

    hey guys we make an rpg and we put animal and plant and you can even talk to turds, Thats why our rpg is the coolest. I shudder to think what these guys will do with baldurs gate 3. Not to mention that even now patches come out. wtf do you even play your games before shipping?
  29. maxineslip
    Nov 25, 2020
    0
    take the time, enjoy the story and gameplay, simply one of the best,i'm glad i played it
  30. arcchancellor
    Jul 14, 2018
    0
    One of the most boring isometric RPGs i ever played. Just like its predecessor i dropped this one after the first location. Boring world, no roleplay, false freedom of character building, cliche story, constant grinding, big locations instead of open world and you are forced to clear them one section by one because enemiest on south and enemies on north have 5-6 lvls difference and u cantOne of the most boring isometric RPGs i ever played. Just like its predecessor i dropped this one after the first location. Boring world, no roleplay, false freedom of character building, cliche story, constant grinding, big locations instead of open world and you are forced to clear them one section by one because enemiest on south and enemies on north have 5-6 lvls difference and u cant go anywhere you want because if enemies even 1 lvl higher it will be tough and if they are +3 well gg. I cant see anything good in this game, I think it would be still fun to play in co-op and it seems like a co-op rpg but playing it in single mode is just so boring. Waay too overrated… Expand
  31. cyberdamn
    Apr 3, 2020
    0
    Usually different (and I mean it) dialogue branches lead to the same result
    Game skips players moves and it wasn't fixed for 3 years now. Either devs don't care about their customers or simply cheat with the game rules, both options show complete disrespect towards the players
  32. zelloxy
    Dec 17, 2018
    0
    I loved the first game. And I want to love this game as well, but I just can't. I can't even get myself to finish the game - it now lays on the shelf so to speak. The new concept around physical and magical armor just ruined it for me completely. This is a RPG game, that comes from board games where dices are the main component. But here, due to the fact of armor, NOTHING is random. 0%I loved the first game. And I want to love this game as well, but I just can't. I can't even get myself to finish the game - it now lays on the shelf so to speak. The new concept around physical and magical armor just ruined it for me completely. This is a RPG game, that comes from board games where dices are the main component. But here, due to the fact of armor, NOTHING is random. 0% change to inflict CC when armor is up, when it's down 100%. This has gotten me to stop playing.… Expand
  33. dogboy
    Oct 9, 2017
    1
    I really wanted to like this game but the clunky controls and UI coupled with the absolutely terrible voice acting put me right off it. Read some guides prior to release so was ready to get into it but put it down after a few hours of boring and slow gameplay. I was ready to punch the guy who voices the narrator within minutes and the other characters were no better. I really like turnI really wanted to like this game but the clunky controls and UI coupled with the absolutely terrible voice acting put me right off it. Read some guides prior to release so was ready to get into it but put it down after a few hours of boring and slow gameplay. I was ready to punch the guy who voices the narrator within minutes and the other characters were no better. I really like turn based strategy games and have played some great ones. Unfortunately this game just sucks. I pity the people who think this game is a masterpiece because their standards must be very, very low.… Expand
  34. Ratingss
    Apr 5, 2023
    0
    This type of gameplay is just atrocious, clicking to move and braindead turn based combat, with a controller its a little more tolerable but you literally dont have commands to do some stuff, the story would have to be the best ever for for me to put up with this kind of bs game in 2023, it isnt even interesting.
  35. PunchBunnie
    Feb 17, 2023
    0
    one of the best games to play with friends or family, highly recommend you do not play this alone
    while it does stand up as an amazing single player RPG it is substantially better with a partner
  36. Demon2017
    Jun 10, 2022
    4
    Мега скучная дрянь. Не понимаю, почему все прутся с неё. Ужасная диалоговая система, скучная боёвка, в игре постоянно нужно шляться по миру и искать всякую фигню. Отвратительный интерфейс. Спасает только несколько интересных моментов и пара неплохих квестов, но играть никому не советую, только если вы не супер фанат.Мега скучная дрянь. Не понимаю, почему все прутся с неё. Ужасная диалоговая система, скучная боёвка, в игре постоянно нужно шляться по миру и искать всякую фигню. Отвратительный интерфейс. Спасает только несколько интересных моментов и пара неплохих квестов, но играть никому не советую, только если вы не супер фанат.
  37. extrememuslim10
    Aug 6, 2018
    0
    This game is a massive 'meh' for me. I don't know why people constantly dismiss all the flaws that this game contains. Itemization is atrocious. Atmosphere is all over the place (you have blood and gore, but in the same time you have cartoony/goofy characters and environments). After act 1, the gameplay becomes extremely tedious and level scaling becomes ridiculous. Main character is asThis game is a massive 'meh' for me. I don't know why people constantly dismiss all the flaws that this game contains. Itemization is atrocious. Atmosphere is all over the place (you have blood and gore, but in the same time you have cartoony/goofy characters and environments). After act 1, the gameplay becomes extremely tedious and level scaling becomes ridiculous. Main character is as slow as a snail. Story is way to linear for an rpg. Companions aren't very compelling. The game's romance is just a bunch of text narrated by an old man. Most of the casual people playing this game don't progress too far into the game, that's why they fail to see the problems after act 1. If you want a true quality CRPG, go play games in the Pillars of Eternity franchise. Some people may be turned off by the RTWP combat (which i absolutely love btw), but everything else about Pillars is exponentially superior.… Expand
  38. Shadowxxx
    Mar 5, 2023
    0
    trash trash trash trash trash trash trash trash trash trash trash trash trash
  39. Crimson9
    Dec 24, 2022
    4
    God this is overrated.

    The story is mediocre at best. The characters are fine, not exceptional by CRPG standards. RPG elements are less than usual for CRPG standards. Turn based combat is cool, but is let down by two things: overabundance of environmental effects, and the armor system. The armor system is such a colossal stupidity that I can barely stomach playing this game.    God this is overrated.

    The story is mediocre at best.

    The characters are fine, not exceptional by CRPG standards.

    RPG elements are less than usual for CRPG standards.

    Turn based combat is cool, but is let down by two things: overabundance of environmental effects, and the armor system. The armor system is such a colossal stupidity that I can barely stomach playing this game.

    The constant looting of everything is tiring. The universe and lore are not nearly as interesting as other CRPGs. Utterly overrated in every way.    … Expand
  40. Stnr
    Jul 9, 2023
    0
    The game did not live up to the hype and noise surrounding it. I felt it lacked atmosphere since the world was war-torn. The creatures did not seem to be in an existential crisis; they were just standing there either crying or doing something random. I felt something was off about it since all living beings exert themselves to the extreme when driven by the will to survive and the will toThe game did not live up to the hype and noise surrounding it. I felt it lacked atmosphere since the world was war-torn. The creatures did not seem to be in an existential crisis; they were just standing there either crying or doing something random. I felt something was off about it since all living beings exert themselves to the extreme when driven by the will to survive and the will to make and weave their destiny.

    Another thing I hated was how I went from one island to another. The only island that fully realized what was missing in the others was the first one. The rest lacked the will to survive through actions, attitudes, the complexity of feelings, and the way their lives changed. Yes, it was a prison, but that does not justify the important little details that were missing.

    I was disappointed in the final island and the final fight, especially as it also felt like something was missing. There was a lack of content, characters, and side stories. Lastly, the whole city atmosphere did not feel fresh, coming from the sea as a group of people who were literally torn apart. Not to mention, it was supposed to be the greatest, the centre of arts, culture, and all that's beautiful in life.

    I highly suspect that the lack of content was due to greedy ambition to make players buy the next games, such as Baldur's Gate 3. Some certain characters highly hinted at going to another place after the end.    … Expand

Awards & Rankings

1
#1 Best PC Game of 2017
7
#7 Most Discussed PC Game of 2017
2
#2 Most Shared PC Game of 2017

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
93

Universal acclaim - based on 72 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 71 out of 72
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 72
  3. Negative: 0 out of 72
  1. Easy Allies
    Mar 1, 2018
    95
    If Divinity: Original Sin 2 had only been an enormous single-player RPG, it would still be far better than most of what you could compare it to. The fact that it has such well-implemented co-op and a user-friendly game master mode gives it a tremendous amount of value at a time where such a thing can feel like a rarity. Even if you never touch all of its various components, you'll still be left with a role-playing game that exemplifies the best aspects of its genre.
    Read full review
  2. LEVEL (Czech Republic)
    Feb 16, 2018
    100
    From a great story to a difficult fight, from a beautifully created world to an excellent multiplayer, Divinity: Original Sin II is a unique game offering an unforgettable experience. Despite some mistakes, another RPG giant was born. [Issue#279]
  3. RPGamer
    Jan 22, 2018
    90
    For those looking to get into cRPGs, and even for those just searching for a great RPG, Divinity: Original Sin II is heartily recommended. It has all the virtues that fans of the subgenre have extolled and wraps them up in a way that is much friendlier to newcomers than every other title I've tried. Combine that with fantastic writing, a highly engaging combat system, and great design, and you have another standout RPG in a year packed full of them.
    Read full review
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