Divinity: Original Sin is a tricky one. On the one hand, this game is a port from the PC and we’re all aware that I’m not the biggest fan of dragging and dropping a game that’s done decently on one platform and trying for a cash grab on another platform. On the other hand, this game appears to have had some significant adjustments in the enhanced edition that weren’t in the original so I am willing to give it the benefit of the doubt. Here is our review for Divinity: Original Sin Enhanced Edition.
Divinity: Original Sin really is an RPG players game. The choices that you make in the game will matter and affect the world around you as you are playing. A lot of games will promise to make the player feel in control and able to change the world but often times this is not the case.
When it comes to the tutorial and the beginning of the game there is very little propping you up. You are given a complicated list of attacks with a basic outline of what they do and are pretty much left at that. It goes one of two ways for people, either they love the free reign of the game or they hate that not a lot has been explained to them. I fall into the latter, unfortunately as the lack of a meaningful tutorial (not just for the turn-based combat, but for other interactions and menus too) really left a sour taste in my mouth and turned the rest of my time with the game into a bit of a slog.
The control scheme is interesting, intuitive in some areas and pretty clunky in others. Combined with the fact that there is enough movement with your camera to make it feel like a 3rd person game, but without the correct angle making it sometimes just frustrating to look around. Overall, I wasn’t a huge fan of the control scheme, but perhaps this was because I am used to the camera from either games like Diablo for third person and various other first person shooters and the one in Divinity didn’t feel right to me.
When it comes to questing and gameplay like I said before, this game is an RPG players game. Quests are multi-tiered and lengthy, there is plenty of fighting which can be enjoyable when you get to learn your characters key skills and the game looks great, running at a smooth 60 frames per second with bright colours. On the topic of quests, some of ’em will even require you to think outside the box and make your characters split up to both achieve separate objectives. I think the quest system in this game is very good and deserves praise.
The combat is incredibly in-depth. There are nuances to this combat system that even grizzled veterans of the system wouldn’t pick up on. Combinations of spells and attacks are going to be key in this game and they will be the reason you keep coming back to try new things out and figure out what attacks work best for every situation. Once again, this is going to be a game that you learn and a craft that you hone until you are exceptionally skilled at it and it will reward you, if you have the patience.
Overall my experience of the game was good and a lot of the systems in play were excellently integrated, but I found myself wanting something different out of the game and that itch just wasn’t scratched.
Final Verdict – 7.5/10
+Ability to hone your combat skills like no other game
+Deep quest system
+Looks beautiful, runs smoothly
-Camera and controls sometimes didn’t feel right
-Lack of clear tutorial made it frustrating
