(Disclaimer: I know this is the alpha version, so I expect a few aspects to change for the official release. On the other hand, we won’t know what will change until that day. So it’s important to point out the strengths and weaknesses of Original Sin 2 at this stage, so that those changes reflect the wants and needs of the gamers that Kickstarted this project. Players like you and me donated to support this sequel because we loved Divinity Original Sin and wanted more of it, with expanded and improved content. Much of my analysis of DOS2 compares it to its processor to point out positive and negative changes in gameplay.)
As an RPG, dialogue has a central role in this game, and while its predecessor provided two amazing systems for role-playing, DOS2 has substituted them with largely useless background “tags.”
One of the most entertaining and engaging parts of Divinity Original Sin was the game of Rock-paper-scissors you had to play whenever you wanted to persuade an NPC. In-game dialogue option suddenly became this fun minigame with a real effect on your game and your character. You’d choose your method of persuasion, either Intimidation (based on Strength), Logic (Intelligence), or Charm (Charisma) and face off in a game of rock-paper-scissors. The higher your base stat and your persuasion skill, the more points you earned for a win. The first debater to 10 points won. This was a game of both chance and skill, and if you failed it could mean a bloody end, but should you succeed you’d be rewarded with loads of XP and possibly a short-cut to your greater goals.
Sadly this persuasion minigame is nowhere to be found in the sequel’s ALPHA. Persuasion is still very much a part of the game, but it’s devolved to a base stat check, resulting in instant success or failure. There’s no more colorful beads, no satisfying sound effects, no clashing icons, no careful analysis of opponents’ patterns, and no opportunity for a low-level underdog to succeed against a high-level NPC. It’s just not fun anymore, which causes the game to lose a unique quality and charm.
Another missing piece is the personality traits that were a key component of dialogue in Original Sin. Original Sin had this incredibly versatile alignment system. When I started playing I was accustomed to the alignments of Good/Evil and Chaotic/Lawful, but Divinity introduced 9 different spectra for you character. The dialogue options you chose would determine if your character was Pragmatic or Romantic, Independent or Obedient, Forgiving or Vindictive, Spiritual or Materialistic and so on and so on. The best part? These traits gave your character a little bonus to a skill. It created rewards and consequences for every conversation, so that you had to stop and think about what to say. It also directly linked role-playing with combat stats, which I know for a fact got a few optimum-builders to think, “I want to keep my Crafting bonus, so what would my Pragmatic character say to this? Based on her personality, how should I respond?” That’s amazing because it’s something that games are rarely able to do. It takes YEARS of rolling dice every week to actually get inside the head of a dwarf cleric. Divinity Original Sin was able to do it in 20 levels!
Divinity Original Sin 2 has replaced this influential personality trait system with background traits available at creation. Characters now start with “tags” such as SCHOLAR, SOLIDER, or NOBLE to reflect their personal history. These tags offer additional dialogue options, but they’re rarely beneficial. Occasionally a tag option will resolve a conversation in a different way, however for the majority of dialogue options the overall outcome remains the same. For example, in one of the earliest opportunities for your character to talk to two major NPCs, Dalis and Alexander, no matter what you say the scene always plays out in the exact same way. This is true for numerous scenarios. On the other hand, there are a few times when having a particular tag will resolve a difficult situation. The ROGUE options comes in handy stopping a shakedown without any bloodshed, and the SOLDIER tag prevents a fight when speaking to one specific lizard. Of course, if the character caught in conversation doesn’t happen to have the one tag you need, then you’re out of luck. If the scene is a key part of the campaign story, then I understand that certain events must remain the same, however, giving a player dialogue options with no effect is only giving us the ILLUSION of choice. Even if it doesn’t affect the story, it should affect our character, or at least it used to. Now that’s been replaced by imaginary options. That’s a huge disappointment. I hope to see the return of Rock-Paper-Scissors and Personality Traits in future updates, or at least the final version, of Divinity Original Sin 2 because without those entertaining and engaging features, the game loses a lot of personality, literally.
thefletchzone 