After several attempts at trying to play this game I finally got it down. My old turn-based combat brain had trouble figuring out how to do the real-time combat mechanics. But I wanted to paly this game SOOOO bad that I forced myself to learn.
The White March expansion also had lots of riddles as part of the quests. I only had to use Google once or twice to solve them. I even figured out the tunnel in the Stalwart Mines and found a secret area that less than 7% of plyers found. I’m so smart. 😁😁
As for the boss fights, I beat everyone, but one dragon. Oh well, I’m happy with that. The final fight with Thaos took two attempts, but once I leveled up enough, he be gone. Well, I almost died again, but I stuck with it. Sagani’s fox companion is the one who actually did the killing blow.
And, again, I apologize for my mispronunciation of names and places. You’ll just have to deal with it. So, let’s get to the breakdown of my rating for this game.
Art/Graphics – 10/10
I was very impressed by the graphics and art. The White March took place in a winter environment and it made me cold just walking around in it. Whenever we were near water, it looked so real with the waves lapping against the shore. Stunning vistas and landscapes.
Voice Overs – 9/10
While I loved the narrators, you could tell the same people were used for different characters. Which makes sense since each narrator has to be paid. Still, I didn’t notice this problem in Dragon Age Origins.
Storyline / Plot – 8/10
The whole premise of this game is finding out how I became a Watcher and what happened to the souls of the Hollowborn. I don’t want to give away any spoilers but I found the answers about the Gods and what Thoas was doing a bit confusing and they conflicted to what went on in the game. IDK. Maybe it’s just me.
There are lots of side quests and I was able to finish them all but for one. That dreaded dragon just wouldn’t die.
However, I dud enjoy the storyline plots for each of my companions. I was able to help each one with their quests except for Durance. I think he was a lost cause to begin with. A tad strange he was. 😂
Party Members – 10/10
Steam gives an achievement for hiring all the companions available. I never earned it as I seemed to have missed two of them. I have no idea how they got triggered, but I was happy with the ones I did find. My least favorite character was Kanu. My favorite was Eder and then Aloth. Of course, they came in at almost the very beginning of the game, so they were with me the longest. Still, I felt bad for Eder and what happened between him and his brother.
Certain areas of the game did trigger conversations between them, which some made me laugh. I got choked up when I had to leave a party member to die to save the rest of us. So good job on that. For making me feel for them. I was also happy how their stories ended at the completion of the game. Except for Durance. As I said, he was a lost cause.
Path Finding / Mechanics – 9/10
I had no issues walking to where I was supposed to go. I did get lost a few times, but that was my error, not the games. However, I felt there were way too many choices for spells and incantations. It got confusing while in the heat of battle. I did enjoy finding trinkets that had the ability to summon creatures to help you during combat. Unfortunately, they don’t stick around long so you can’t summon them all at one. At the end, each of my companions had one and I found a ‘pet’ that fought with me.
There were pets all over in the game, but only one, after a really tough fight, was able to fight with me. A lost opportunity in my opinion.
As you can tell from my ratings, I give this game a hearty thumbs up and intend on playing the second game in the series. You can check out my Let’s Play below.
If you’ve played Pillars of Eternity, what are your thoughts? Did you enjoy it? How many times did it take you to beat Thaos?
