This game is special. I dropped 150 hours into just one playthrough and couldn't stop thinking about what I would do next time. The combat is truly excellent with many fights requiring me to use every option at my disposal, at least on tactician difficulty. The social aspects and exploration are also top-notch and are setting a new industry standard. I felt really connected to this party and enjoyed getting to know them. However, there are so many little things that irked me throughout. Certain questlines and romance paths have such specific triggers that you have to hit with no way of knowing what you need to do. Like I wanted to romance Karlach, but because I didn't talk to a random NPC in the corner of a large settlement before clearing the goblin camp I was completely locked out, EVEN THOUGH YOU CAN FIND AND TALK TO THAT GUY LATER. Friendly npcs would constantly walk into my area of effect spells or even just terrain effects and then aggro onto me causing me to have to not use some builds just because of the dumb ai. Characters would consistently get caught on random objects when jumping, causing it to end early even though the game told me that the jump would succeed. Some party members were clearly given more things to do in the story and their own personal quests, meaning that some feel a little out of place. There are tons of these little things that were frustrating, but I can't give this game anything lower than a 10. The fact that a 100-hour crunchy number turn-based rpg based on Dungeons and Dragons was able to see mainstream appeal is insane and a true testament to how good this game is. It is a truly special and unique experience.

Reviewed on May 06, 2024


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