Here are some reviews for Pillars of Eternity: The White March - Part 2.
PCWorld, 4/5
For those of you who skipped the spoilers: I (with some caveats) like it. The White March has its issues—pacing problems in the first half, an over-reliance on huge groups of enemies in the second, and three companions who aren’t given enough time to breathe before their quests are over—but it’s a solid expansion with some incredible moments sprinkled throughout. I still think it’s a better piece of content if you encounter it organically during your first Pillars of Eternity run, but both halves combined are a pretty good argument for end-gamers to dive back in. For a short while, at least.
The White March does what most expansions should, and works within the existing game parameters to provide refined extensions of what's on offer in the main title. It puts more thought into making each combat encounter more of a tactical challenge, and, in its quest design, exhibits some of the main strengths of Pillars of Eternity in offering different options of approach. Choices made during the opening chapter (and the rest of the game) have a reasonable impact on the climax too. It feels a touch strange to wrap-up the final, substantive part of Pillars of Eternity without it being the game's actual ending, but that's the nature of the mid-game expansion model. Though it won't radically alter anybody's existing opinion on the game, those who voted it as Best PC Exclusive of 2015 in our Reader Awards will be well sated.
I'm curious about everyone's experience with the latest patch/DLC. I'm only a short way in so far, but everything seems to be working well. Prior to this patch, my fps would tank when I got to Gilded Vale, but it's playing really smoothly now (maybe a tiny bit of slowdown, but nothing drastic like before). I'm not entirely sure that's due to the patch or because I did some tweaking to my graphics card settings and updated to Windows 10 since I last played. I'm curious to see what happens when I reach the big city. the outdoor areas of Copperlane were nearly unplayable before because everything went sooooo slow.
Loading times seem to have improved a little bit for me, but they are still nowhere near ideal...
The combat system before was pretty inscrutable to me, and still is. There is so much going on "under the hood" that it's really difficult to figure out if my characters are optimal or not. I have switched to playing on hard, though. It got to be a bit too easy playing on normal on my first (aborted) attempt. The enemy AI seems a lot tougher no. My poor Cipher has been knocked out repeatedly this play through. on that note, I do like the new penalties that are imposed when char's get knocked out. It's pretty similar to Dragon Age: Origins in that respect. I do wish there were ways to fix up a character's wounds other than resting, but I do like having that penalty for getting knocked out. It makes combat just a little more exciting, knowing there will be consequences for not keeping everyone on their feet.
@procco What are people's specs complaining about load times? After I got with the times and bought a SSD, I'm finding the load times too short. Often there isn't enough time to read the load screen tips!
@procco What are people's specs complaining about load times? After I got with the times and bought a SSD, I'm finding the load times too short. Often there isn't enough time to read the load screen tips!
I'm personally running on a lower end laptop (an HP Pavilion)...this game shouldn't even run at all much less at highest graphics settings, so I'm definitely not complaining
Feargus reveals that Atari were unable to fund the entire development of Neverwinter Nights 2, forcing Obsidian to invest an additional one million dollars of their own into the game. This nearly bankrupted the company.
Feargus regrets using the UI-centric Scaleform graphics middleware to develop South Park: The Stick of Truth and wishes they'd switched to something else early on. It caused lots of complications, as opposed to Fallout: New Vegas which benefited from excellent development tools.
Accordingly, for Pillars of Eternity 2, Obsidian are focusing heavily on developing efficient tools before going into full production.
Feargus also regrets splitting the Pillars of Eternity: The White March expansion pack into two halves. He says the full expansion took about three months longer to finish than originally planned, an additional 500,000 dollars in development costs. The delay was both due to complications caused by the split and due to a failure to account for the manpower required to support the base game.
Feargus says that the White March expansion wasn't priced competitively - people would rather buy an AAA game on sale for $10 than an expansion pack for $15 or $25. Future Eternity games will use a Fallout: New Vegas-like DLC model, with more, smaller and cheaper releases.
Feargus reveals that Atari were unable to fund the entire development of Neverwinter Nights 2, forcing Obsidian to invest an additional one million dollars of their own into the game. This nearly bankrupted the company.
Well, I think it was worth since they created my favorite game of all time n_n
i plan on getting the game during the thanks giving sale and wanted to know if it is worth getting the expansion along with the game or wait and get white march later?
I thought that the 3.03 v. would be the last update for Pillars of Eternity, but Obsidian have decided to release at least one more patch (in beta now).
I have more or less just started getting into PoE and I would like to ask more experienced players for advice every once in a while. Without spoilers of course. This will mainly be stuff about character building and such.
At the moment I am using an aumaua cipher with maxed might and intelligence. She has reached level 4 and I am wondering what talent would be a better pick between Greater Focus and Draining Whip. She already took Biting Whip at an earlier level (I figured the increased damage would also build focus faster, making the skill doubly useful). I am also not sure which level 2 power to pick at this level as none of them really seem to stand out to me. She already has Mind Blades and Mental Binding.
My strategy for her is mainly to have her hang back with ranged weapons to build her focus and use powers while Eder tanks. She will rarely be in the front lines of combat, so I am not terribly worried about her defenses unless an enemy decides to go for her.
Partly depends on talent choices (e.g. scion of flame et al) and what other damage options you have. Burning lash seems to be most common choice, followed by corrosive. Not sure if there has been a great deal of research into enemy DRs and which one mathematically is most efficient.
Well... At the moment I only have the necessary components for burn and corrosive. I guess I should choose corrosive since I don't currently have any corrosive damage powers (I decided against taking Antipathetic Field as it seemed too difficult to use effectively)...
In case you are curious, I am thinking of upgrading Fulvano's Blunderbuss for my cipher.
By the way, how, exactly, does that Combusting Wounds spell work? The description seems rather confusing to me... is it a good spell or a not so good spell?
What would be a good choice for a level 4 power for my cipher? I already have Silent Scream and Pain Block. I am thinking I want either Body Attunement or Going Between. Which would be better? Or is there something else that would be better?
What would be a good choice for a level 4 power for my cipher? I already have Silent Scream and Pain Block. I am thinking I want either Body Attunement or Going Between. Which would be better? Or is there something else that would be better?
I chose Body Attunement - will help against biggest bosses in this game.
Comments
PCWorld, 4/5
For those of you who skipped the spoilers: I (with some caveats) like it. The White March has its issues—pacing problems in the first half, an over-reliance on huge groups of enemies in the second, and three companions who aren’t given enough time to breathe before their quests are over—but it’s a solid expansion with some incredible moments sprinkled throughout. I still think it’s a better piece of content if you encounter it organically during your first Pillars of Eternity run, but both halves combined are a pretty good argument for end-gamers to dive back in. For a short while, at least.
http://www.pcworld.com/article/3033465/software/pillars-of-eternity-the-white-march-part-two-review-an-incredible-apocalyptic-finish.html
PC Invasion, 8/10
The White March does what most expansions should, and works within the existing game parameters to provide refined extensions of what's on offer in the main title. It puts more thought into making each combat encounter more of a tactical challenge, and, in its quest design, exhibits some of the main strengths of Pillars of Eternity in offering different options of approach. Choices made during the opening chapter (and the rest of the game) have a reasonable impact on the climax too. It feels a touch strange to wrap-up the final, substantive part of Pillars of Eternity without it being the game's actual ending, but that's the nature of the mid-game expansion model. Though it won't radically alter anybody's existing opinion on the game, those who voted it as Best PC Exclusive of 2015 in our Reader Awards will be well sated.
http://www.pcinvasion.com/pillars-of-eternity-the-white-march-part-2-review
The Escapist, 4/5 http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/video-games/editorials/reviews/15466-Pillars-of-Eternity-The-White-March-Part-2-Review
Gamewatcher, 9/10 http://www.gamewatcher.com/reviews/pillars-of-eternity-the-white-march-part-2-review/12472
Softpedia, 4/5 http://www.softpedia.com/reviews/games/pc/pillars-of-eternity-the-white-march-part-2-review-500483.shtml
Invision Community, 8/10 http://invisioncommunity.co.uk/2016/02/16/pillars-eternity-white-march-part-2-review/
Loading times seem to have improved a little bit for me, but they are still nowhere near ideal...
The combat system before was pretty inscrutable to me, and still is. There is so much going on "under the hood" that it's really difficult to figure out if my characters are optimal or not. I have switched to playing on hard, though. It got to be a bit too easy playing on normal on my first (aborted) attempt. The enemy AI seems a lot tougher no. My poor Cipher has been knocked out repeatedly this play through. on that note, I do like the new penalties that are imposed when char's get knocked out. It's pretty similar to Dragon Age: Origins in that respect. I do wish there were ways to fix up a character's wounds other than resting, but I do like having that penalty for getting knocked out. It makes combat just a little more exciting, knowing there will be consequences for not keeping everyone on their feet.
Version 3.01.977 on Steam White March I and II
Edit: published
http://forums.obsidian.net/blog/7/entry-191-update-notes-301/
http://www.pcgamer.com/brian-fargo-josh-sawyer-and-gordon-walton-on-the-history-and-future-of-rpgs/1/
http://www.gamebanshee.com/news/117076-leonard-boyarsky-leaves-blizzard-joins-obsidian.html
http://www.gamepressure.com/e.asp?ID=712
PoE eternity was to me all about Obsidian. I was more fan of the studio than the game.
I frankly hope after going through the motions, now they might again be playful.
Feargus reveals that Atari were unable to fund the entire development of Neverwinter Nights 2, forcing Obsidian to invest an additional one million dollars of their own into the game. This nearly bankrupted the company.
Feargus regrets using the UI-centric Scaleform graphics middleware to develop South Park: The Stick of Truth and wishes they'd switched to something else early on. It caused lots of complications, as opposed to Fallout: New Vegas which benefited from excellent development tools.
Accordingly, for Pillars of Eternity 2, Obsidian are focusing heavily on developing efficient tools before going into full production.
Feargus also regrets splitting the Pillars of Eternity: The White March expansion pack into two halves. He says the full expansion took about three months longer to finish than originally planned, an additional 500,000 dollars in development costs. The delay was both due to complications caused by the split and due to a failure to account for the manpower required to support the base game.
Feargus says that the White March expansion wasn't priced competitively - people would rather buy an AAA game on sale for $10 than an expansion pack for $15 or $25. Future Eternity games will use a Fallout: New Vegas-like DLC model, with more, smaller and cheaper releases.
http://forums.obsidian.net/topic/89399-the-304-beta-is-now-live-patch-notes-within/
At the moment I am using an aumaua cipher with maxed might and intelligence. She has reached level 4 and I am wondering what talent would be a better pick between Greater Focus and Draining Whip. She already took Biting Whip at an earlier level (I figured the increased damage would also build focus faster, making the skill doubly useful). I am also not sure which level 2 power to pick at this level as none of them really seem to stand out to me. She already has Mind Blades and Mental Binding.
My strategy for her is mainly to have her hang back with ranged weapons to build her focus and use powers while Eder tanks. She will rarely be in the front lines of combat, so I am not terribly worried about her defenses unless an enemy decides to go for her.
Good stuff from level 2 is Mental Binding, Phantom Foes, Recall Agony (for single powerful foes) and Psychovampiric Shield (for tank or solo ciphers).
Mental Binding likely to be your standard cast. Or just cast 2 x level 1 powers if you prefer those.
In case you are curious, I am thinking of upgrading Fulvano's Blunderbuss for my cipher.
By the way, how, exactly, does that Combusting Wounds spell work? The description seems rather confusing to me... is it a good spell or a not so good spell?
I chose Body Attunement - will help against biggest bosses in this game.