Obsidian is a developer that is steeped in a lot of love from RPG fans. Be it their first outing with Disney’s latest cash cow, their adaptation of the long running show from Trey Parker and Matt Stone, or their most recent attack on the genre that Bethesda used to champion. Prior to being bought up by Microsoft (a huge blow to Sony), there were plans for one more game to be brought over to the PS4, and it was a sequel to a beloved Kickstarter success story.
Pillars of Eternity II: Deadfire Ultimate Edition brings the base game and all its beloved DLC content in a single package. For fans of things like Baldur’s Gate, Planescape: Torment, and more recent Divinity games, this will hit home in all the right places. It’s got beautiful landscapes, models, and animations viewable via an isometric camera. It has deep lore and a wonderful sense of humor. It has choices that will make you feel the game can be played over and over again with different outcomes. And it has two different ways for players to approach its combat: real time with pauses and turn-based. The game is huge, especially compared to its predecessor, and contains a lot to love, regardless of play style.
It’s strange to be playing two drastically different perspectives on an RPG from the same developer. My wife bought me The Outer Worlds for Christmas, and it’s almost impossible to not see the similarities between the games. While the FPS is much more reminiscent of the Bethesda takes on the genre, the influence of non-combative skills is definitely seen between the two. Since so many games focus on combat as the only means to an end, I’ve been consciously working on building characters where that’s not necessary. It often times means having a hard time when faced with combat, but it also means playing the game differently than most other things I touch. Seeing how that’s tackled between the two perspectives is fun, although I think PoE does it better than TOW.
Whether you played the original to completion, played the first hour, or never touched the game, the beginning of this is kind enough to give you a quick recap and allow you to choose the events that happened the first time around (kind of like Mass Effect 2 for PS3 players). It’s funny to think something as large as the first game can be summed up in a few text boxes, but then again, it’s not necessarily the story but all the events and connections you make that really build the experience. It’s like saying Final Fantasy VII is about a mercenary that stops a madman from destroying the planet. It’s technically true, but there’s so much more that happens along the way. And boy does this game have a lot for you delve into, should you choose. Even if you don’t, there’s plenty to dig into with the main story line.
For as great as the game is, there are some issues that are insufferable. The first thing you’ll notice, and that you’ll be reminded of regularly, are the load times. I feel like I complain about these in most games recently, but heaven forbid you forget to do something in an area and accidentally leave. In the beginning town you’ll be given the option to evict a group of folks and I somehow missed the guy I needed to talk to and walked onto the balcony, realizing I needed to go back inside after. The load times between leaving and going back in took four minutes (not a PS4 Pro, may be better on that). I’m not exaggerating, but I wish I was. Typically the load points are a bit more spread out, but if you’re exploring in a town, prepare for a lot of downtime while playing. Another thing that stuck out more than I wanted is that the controls seem a bit out of sorts with the console version. Your fellow adventurer may stop tagging along, highlights may appear or disappear at random, and other weird glitches are often visible in combat. I’ve always enjoyed Obsidian games, although I’m not sure I’ve ever played one that wasn’t broken in some respect. Not Bethesda broken, mind you, but definitely something that would benefit from a good patch. And as of writing this, there have been a few. I’ve been waiting past release to write reviews lately because I want to give each game a fair shake, especially at the end of these console cycles. I know many games are provided before they’re actually ready (Days Gone), and I want the review to be true to the actual experience people that buy the game will have. Additionally, the game gives you options for font size, and even when on maximum, I had trouble reading it from my normal spot in the house. This is true of most AAA games the past few years, and I’m not sure why it’s such an issue – especially ones so focused on the written word.
There’s something truly special about the team at Obsidian. Microsoft buying them up was one of the most shocking purchases I’ve seen in a while, and I’m happy they will no longer need to worry about capital. I’m sure with that kind of funding, there will be many quality games coming to Xbox consoles in the future. For Sony users, Pillars of Eternity II: Deadfire Ultimate Edition will likely be the last game from Obsidian to grace their console for a while, if not ever, and despite not being perfect, it’s one of the best isometric RPGs you can play today. Just make sure to bring something to distract yourself with all the downtime.
8 out of 10
Pros
- Beautifully Written
- Charming Characters
- Gorgeous Landscapes and Animations
- Player Agency
Cons
- Glitches
- Load Times
- Font Size/Color
Pillars of Eternity II: Deadfire Ultimate Edition was developed by Obsidian Entertainment and published in conjunction with Versus Evil. It is available on NS, PC, PS4, and X1. The game was provided to us for review on PS4. If you’d like to see more of Pillars of Eternity II: Deadfire Ultimate Edition, check out the developer’s site.
Here at GBG we use a rating method that you are more than likely familiar with – a scale of 1 to 10. For clarification, we intend on using the entire scale: 1-4 is something you should probably avoid paying for; 5-7 is something that is worth playing, but probably not at full price; 8-10 is a great title that you can feel confident about buying. If you have any questions or comments about how we rate a game, please let us know.
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