Sunday, January 28, 2018

Dave Critiques - Pillars of Eternity: The gods must be crazy


Hey hey folks, Dave here. Welcome to my critique of Pillars of Eternity. Just a friendly reminder that I will be discussing the game for those who have played it. If you haven’t and are worried about spoilers, please pause the video and go play the game before returning. For everyone else, let’s continue.

In Dyrford Village you meet a noble named Lord Harond. His daughter Aelys has gone missing and he implores you to find her. Your investigation takes you to a Skaen temple underneath the town inhabited by cultists who worship the god and are performing blood rituals. Upon discovering their leader Wymund, you learn the awful truth. Aelys is Lord Harond’s niece, and he has impregnated her in order to carry on his bloodline. Wymund is tired of the aristocracy not paying for their debauchery and corruption. The priest has set Aelys up as a timebomb of sorts. She will return to Harond and through Skaen’s magic, extinguish their whole bloodline, serving as a warning to others that such vile behavior will not be tolerated.

The quest Blood Legacy is an example of many of the sidequests in Pillars of Eternity. The initial quest giver is either lying to you or not telling the whole truth. Upon further investigation you discover this, resulting in a decision to make whether or not the lying is justified and what action you will take against the parties involved. I used to agonise over moral decisions in RPGs but recently, I find myself picking what seems like the right answer in the moment and seeing where that leads me. Just like using this practise in real life, it doesn’t always lead to a good outcome. This is because our world, like Eora (the world in which Pillars takes place) is full of nuance and uncertainty. 

The world of Pillars is one where the soul exists, magic exists, but the Gods may or may not exist. For the first time in any RPG, I found myself reading a lot of the ingame books as well as using the ingame encyclopedia to read up on certain groups, gods, peoples, and the world’s history. I wish I could say it helped piece everything together, but as the credits rolled I was left with more questions than answers. Questions about important things, like the main character’s role in what is going on as you play through the game, and especially their relationship to Thaos, the antagonist. I’ll explain my theories on this a little later.

While your main character is a chosen one like in many RPGs (although what chose you is not altogether a positive), Pillars of Eternity is focused on the group instead of the individual. You can hire your own party members to assist you through the game’s combat, creating any classes you wish, but I would recommend having the game’s many side characters join your party. They each have their own personalities, troubles, and desires that unfold during the game. Each party member’s sidequest has multiple stages, and some like Durance’s don’t resolve until close to the closing credits. What endears you to these characters more than their personalities, is their utility in combat. You come to rely on what each character can do. So much so, that when new characters join, you might be like me and leave them waiting around in your stronghold, as you don’t want to disturb the party lineup you now depend on.

In Pillars, I found myself getting into a familiar rhythm with combat. I found strategies that worked for most encounters and only when that strategy failed did I start thinking about what else I could do. Then I incorporated aspects of this new strategy until I needed to adjust again, repeating until the end of the game. As pillars is a party based RPG, these strategies involved using each one of my 6 members in very particular ways. This is what I meant by growing close to my party members because of their utility in combat. Eder’s knockdown and defender abilities made him an ideal tank, capturing the enemy’s attention. If I needed a backup tank, Sagani’s pet did the trick, her bond with the creature helping her deal damage to this second attacker. Kana’s chants that strengthened the party were as invaluable as the buffs and debuffs that Durance laid down each fight, while Aloth’s arcane assault was great for AoE damage, using fireballs and concussive missiles on stronger or more numerous targets. My main character being a Cipher meant that Mind Blades was a great way to open up any encounter along with blinding or paralysing any difficult foe.

Despite the ability to pause the battle at any time and assign commands, battles have a sense of tension in them, leading to panic when things go wrong. I think this has to do with the encounter design. Whether it’s the combination of enemies, the location of battle, or a blending of the two, this is what forces the need for new tactics. Familiarising myself with what my spellcasters could do. The Wizard and Priest gained an absurd amount of spells each level, but even the few spells the Cipher has access to were ignored until difficult fights. I found myself reading through spell descriptions, and finding something that worked exceptionally well for that encounter, adding that spell into my optimal strategy rotation or saving it as the first thing to try when facing the next tough encounter. This “throwing everything at the wall and seeing what sticks” mentality kept the dangerous encounters interesting, with some fights lasting upward of 30 minutes without losing that sense of tension and excitement. The final boss and its guardians are an example of this. His ability to soul hop and buff himself and his allies caused many frustrated restarts and variations in strategy before he finally fell under the crack of a rifle

While combat is exciting, one thing I love about this type of RPG is that dialogue is just as important. Pillars of Eternity is combat heavy, but many encounters are avoided and quests completed through saying the right thing at the right time. I remember in the original Fallout games how important it was to pick the speech skill. Not that you’re forced to talk your way through Pillars. I imagine you could have a lot of fun slashing your way through everyone who looked at you funny, but a large amount of enjoyment and satisfaction I derived during my play was being able to talk my way out of a bad situation.

This push and pull between combat and dialogue is a thematic undercurrent of Pillars’ RPG power fantasy. As I levelled up, my characters grew ever more powerful and the fights became more trivial. At the same time, even after the final boss, I felt I had been powerless throughout the events of the narrative. An obvious example is no matter what choices are made during the trial at the end of act 2, the Duc dies and chaos ensues. An example possibly tied to my own ineptitude is not understanding my character’s past and the nature of Eora’s Gods. It’s not like I wasn’t paying attention either. I read many of the ingame books and took my time reading dialogue. In the end, I really don’t know what role my character played as Thaos’ right hand other than the one who betrayed Iovara. Is it just that my character’s association with Thaos in a past life lead her to follow him in this one? I mean Thaos’ plans associated with the Hollowborn are heinous and he definitely needed to be stopped, but I still remain confused about the personal nature of the conflict.

I remain confused about the Gods as well. The seeds of doubt are sewn related to their existence late in act 3. Wars have been fought because of these gods and people have done horrible things in their name, but perhaps the question of their existence carries more weight in a world where the soul is a verifiable truth. I was left believing the gods to be real, in a sense. You talk to the gods of your choosing at the end of the game. I had conversations with both Hylea and Wael (two of the only gods I cared to converse with. I would have liked to talk to Eothas as well, but he wasn’t available).

While I believe the Gods of Eora are real, I think of them as Greek Gods. This is a world of magic and power. Some beings have used both to elevate themselves to a level where they are revered, and they work to shape the world as they see fit. Of course as they all have differing philosophies as to how the world should be, they come into conflict and they play games with each other. Well, games might be a light way to put it. Magran straight up murders Eothas through her followers and Woedica has been sowing her own seeds of dismay for what sounds like centuries if the life of Thaos is any indication. The question that the player and their party wrestle with is if the Gods are not really gods, does it change anything? Do people need gods to believe in? Does it make life more bearable or does it lead to greater suffering? Is there a difference between a true god and a mortal that has used power to elevate themselves to such a position? A constant theme of many of the quests in Pillars is the danger of money and power. How it corrupts those who have a lot of it, and how they see themselves above consequence. How much greater is this righteousness when the level of power is raised exponentially?

I would love to hear your theories about the Watcher’s role in the game, whether the gods are real or not, and what that means for Eora. What are your thoughts on animancy? Did you view it as a danger? A necessary evil? Is some knowledge just too dangerous for people to have? The soul machines of the builders certainly lean towards that idea. Who was your favourite companion and why? What are your thoughts of the game in general? What did you think of this video? Let me know in the comments. 

Thanks for watching. If you enjoyed what I have to say, please like, share and subscribe, and I hope you’re having a wonderful day.

Tuesday, January 2, 2018

The Best Games I Played in 2017



Intro

Hey hey folks. Dave here. The amount of quality games released in 2017 was staggering. I’m lucky in a way that I didn’t have the time or money to play them all. I got to play a lot more games I wanted to than last year, but there is so much I missed out on. I don’t have a Switch so I wasn’t able to enjoy Breath of the Wild and Super Mario Odyssey. I have no PS4 so I wasn’t able to play Horizon: Zero Dawn or Persona 5. I bought Nier: Automata in the Steam Christmas sale, so I look forward to playing that this year, and I will definitely pick up Nioh at some point. As usual, most of what I played in 2017 were indie titles, and big name games from previous years. Yup, this video is going to be like the one I made last year. This is not a list of the best games I played released in 2017. This is a list of the best games I played in 2017. Most of the games on this list are from 2017... and 2016, there are a couple from 2015, and a couple even before that. Perhaps you’ll find a game you missed out on. Perhaps you’ll be reminded to visit an old favourite. Perhaps you’re just interested in what I loved playing this year. It’s quite the list.

Now this year I’ve done things a little differently. I’ve picked 5 games I made impressions videos on and I’ve picked 5 games I made critique videos on for a grand total of 10 games. I wanted a mix of games I thought were great even though I didn’t play through them along with the best games I played till I reached the end credits. Links to all these games and my videos on them are in the description. Like last year the following list is in alphabetical order. Enjoy!


Broforce (2015)

This is partly on my list due to the fun I had making my impressions video, but playing a couple of hours with my friend Robbie online over Discord cemented its spot. Exploding terrain, giant piloted mechs, and an ever increasing amount of enemy resistence stop the game from ever becoming dull. That you keep unlocking new bros adds to the over the top excitement and bombast that is suffused into every level. I’d highly recommend this as a couch multiplayer game. It’s goofy run and gun fun.


Firewatch (2016)

Narrative focused games in a first person perspective often try and sell themselves on the story being told, as well as the beauty of the landscape the player is wandering through. Dear Esther was the last of these games to really deliver on the visuals for me, at least until Firewatch. Firewatch’s Wyoming wilderness is a joy to traverse. While the solitude of the forest is undercut by obnoxious campers, your radio partner Delilah, and the larger mystery of what is happening over the course of the game, it’s hiking through nature with your map and compass where Firewatch’s strengths really showcase themselves.


Hollow Knight (2017)

The way Hollow Knight evokes a sombre and tense mood through its exploration and combat mechanics, despite the cute character design is charming. This is one of those games where I feel the time I spent with it just scratched the surface of what the game has to offer. I’m looking forward to returning to it in 2018 to see how expansive the world is and how the level layouts and the enemies that inhabit them keep the game fresh up until its conclusion. This is the best platformer I played in 2017.


King's Quest (2016)

I think my video on King’s Quest is the best critique I’ve ever written, or at least the closest in execution to what I had in mind when I started writing it. If the game weren’t excellent in itself, I don’t think I would have been able to create such a video. King’s Quest walks a fine line in relying on the nostalgia of the original beloved adventure game series while trying to move beyond. The games are linked together in a stronger way than they once were and the new characterisation of Graham, Mannanan, and others leaves a personal stamp on the series from the developers of this new episodic adventure game. Nostalgia plays a role, but that doesn’t negate this being the best adventure game I played in 2017.

Nex Machina (2017)

I hope you like voxels. In my impressions video, I mention the word “smooth” many times. Nex Machina is the smoothest game I played in 2017. The twin stick shooter is one of those genres where most games don’t deviate too much from the established formula. Nex Machina is no different, instead looking to sand off the rough edges, polishing and refining until everything sparkles. Nex Machina dedicates itself to intense gameplay that is just varied enough in short stage bursts to keep the player vigilent while being delighted with the visual and audio design. As you’re destroying robots and saving humans, it feels like a spiritual successor to Robotron 2084, the game that started it all.


Nier (2010)

Those who have seen my Nier video might be surprised I’m listing it among the best games I played in 2017. I did say Nier is a great video game, but that was alongside saying it is also a terrible video game. It’s the spectacle, characters, and themes that make Nier favourable. Distancing myself from the frustrations of the combat has done a lot to brighten my thoughts of everything else. Most importantly, it’s a game that I still think about all this time after playing. More often than not, a game is doing something right if it sticks with you.

Pillars of Eternity (2015)

I’m in the middle of playing Pillars for a critique at the moment. The highest compliment I can give it is that at the end of each gaming session, I want to keep playing. Its world and its characters are shrouded in mystery and intrigue, only doling out snippets of backstory as you play, and because of this, the world feels whole. Like everyone would still be going about their business if you weren’t there, but as you are here and have a pivotal role to play, the world and its characters start revealing history and circumstance to you the longer you inhabit it. Hopefully by the end, I have a grasp on what it’s all about. If this were a film, I could just rewatch it to deepen my understanding. A 40 hour RPG is another case entirely.


Rakuen (2017)

I chose not to play through the rest of Rakuen due to speculation that the ending would be at the least bittersweet, and at the most, emotionally devastating. Despite that, the game is beautiful in its whimsical character portraits, endearing creature design, and delightful music. I also love how the first dungeon I found myself in is about helping the characters who live there rather than looting the place and destroying everything in my path. One day I’ll work myself up to playing the rest.


The Witcher (2007)

The Witcher is a game where the positives outweigh the negatives. I put up with consistent crashing and framerate issues to play through this 10 year old game. I love the world, I love the characters, I love the consequences of the choices you make as a player, and I love the ending revelations of the story. I love how the final cutscene sets up another chapter for Geralt. Almost as if the consequnces of your choices in the game arn’t just confined to the game itself. Hopefully I can get around to playing The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings in 2018.


The Witness (2016)

What makes The Witness different from the rest of this list, is it’s a game where I’m more excited about the prospect of future playthroughs than I am about my first. Like most puzzle games, I had to rely on a walkthrough extensively to get through it, but when it was over and I was putting together my video, I realised that getting to the end wasn’t the point of the game. I’m now excited to return sometime in the future, enjoying the puzzles for their own sake rather than as a means to complete yet another video game. An appreciation for the architecture, how the puzzles are put together, and the prospect that the island might reveal more to me a second time through accompanies this realisation. It’s fitting that this is the final game on the list as it might have been my favourite that I played in 2017.


Outro

And that was my 2017 in video games. Now it’s your turn. Please tell me the games you loved playing the most in the comments. They don’t have to be from 2017, but if you limited your pick to that year, you’d have more than enough to choose from. I look forward to trying some of the games I missed in 2017 this year along with many other great gaming experiences, and I look forward to making another one of these videos when 2019 rolls around. Have a terrific 2018 everyone. Let’s make this year the best it can be, and I hope you’re having a wonderful day.