The writing in this game is average

[agentorange]

shut the fuck up you idiot

 

[MrMarbles]

shut the fuck up you idiot

Try to imagine watching an episode of Game of Thrones with an all-Alabama cast. It would be no bueno.

 

[One-and-a-half-Ivan]

I was wondering why the dialogue sometimes sounds half-assed, even though it's fairly well written. My theory: American voice actors. No offense to the muricans out there, but there is a reason why so many villains/interesting chars in popular culture are cast as English.

Sure it's a fantasy trope that everyone speaks British English, but I don't see the problem. If it ain't broke, don't fix it. I don't want my caster to sound like some yokel redneck dipshit from Oklahoma.

Dyrwood in an analogue of America. I believe if tha game took place in Aedyr, for example, they'd have this british accent you want.

 

[dragonul09]

Usually, if a game has a line that I can hold on to and reflect upon it, I consider it's writing worthwhile. This game has done that. Following is my favorite piece of prose from the game:


there is an absence in your hands

you'd never find that kind of writing in any other rpg made nowadays.

And that's what is wrong with the writting in general,too verbose and flamboyant ,everything in this game is over explained.

Take a peek at some of Planescape writting:

The difference is like day and night.In Planescape the dialogue is simple,yet beautiful and it never fails to captivate you.In PoE everything feels exactly like a book ,everything is over explained that it gets tedious after you encounter a few npcs.

Dude, Planescape is the father of verbose games. Far, far more than anything I have seen so far from PoE.

And I don't think it's a bad thing, considering the narrative style of both games.

Not quite,in Planescape they rarely jumped the shark when it comes to over explaining something that could be said in two words.
In PoE almost every npc has a lengthy descriptive information about what he does ,how he looks and it's just getting tedious after speaking with 10-15 npcs,most of the time i found myself skipping a lot of dialogue because it was not interesting.

And let's be serious,Planescape had to do some over explaining here and there ,because it was and still is one of the most unique settings out there.

The story starts slow and it's full of mistey ,i mean come on,you have a fucking flying skull as a companion that has more humor than an actually stand up comedian.
Planescape has to be verbose because it's weird and unique,PoE is not and it doesn't need to be so verbose.PoE it's just a carbone copy of Baldurs Gate and sadly it failed.

 

[Volrath]

Planescape has to be verbose because it's weird and unique,PoE is not and it doesn't need to be so verbose.

 

[felipepepe]

Beated the game. My biggest problem with the writing is how poor the main quest motivation is until Act 3. Supposedly, you must seek the hooded guys because you became Awakened and that's driving you mad, but:

- You NEVER feel like you're going mad. That's my main complain. You get like one brief vision every 4-5 hours game (people being tortured, brief past life recalls), and maybe 5 times during the entire game a companion will comment that you have trouble sleeping. Which is just silly, since I press the rest button and get 8 uninterrupted hours of sleep, more than I actually get in real-life. I get that Sawyer didn't want players to get frustrated randomly losing camping supplies or getting a nasty debuff, but do something else them! What's that word Campster loves again? Oh yes, ludonarrative dissonance. Seriously, the mutated toe in Fallout 2 felt more threatening, as it actually interrupted my exploration/sleep and made me worry.

- NOTHING points towards the hooded guys being able to solve your problem. Initially you don't even know if they really caused it, or if it was the weird "soul wind". Desperately going after them to solve something that has no known cure makes zero sense.

- There are many Awakened and Watchers in the world. Yes, some have gone mad, but others live perfectly well, and have just with minor issues. Kana even talks about how Watchers live comfortable lives working as oracles. So why am I, the person who came to Gilded Vale in search of land, abandoning my newly conquered keep to search for a cure to my super-powers?

Even after the pace picks up in Act 3, it wastes a huge opportunity:

Spoiler

Ok, Thaos is using the machines to steal the soul from children. So why don't I travel back to the machines I know and disable/revert/destroy them, now that I know how? At least make it a side-quest, goddamit.

And at the very end, another thing:

Spoiler

Why can't I tell the world that the Gods are false? I don't get any choice on this? Only explanation I can think is that they didn't want to ruin the setting for a sequel...

 

[hiver]

This thread writing is bellow average.

PoE wins by default.

You NEVER feel like you're going mad. That's my main complain.

Lessons from MoTB my friend, we cant have casuals screaming now can we?

- NOTHING points towards the hooded guys being able to solve your problem. Initially you don't even know if they really caused it, or if it was the weird "soul wind".

It was definitely not the Biawac, since you bloody escaped from it and then ran into some sort of effect that the bad guys made - which was completely different then biawac.

 

[Duraframe300]

- NOTHING points towards the hooded guys being able to solve your problem. Initially you don't even know if they really caused it, or if it was the weird "soul wind". Desperately going after them to solve something that has no known cure makes zero sense.

- There are many Awakened and Watchers in the world. Yes, some have gone mad, but others live perfectly well, and have just with minor issues. Kana even talks about how Watchers live comfortable lives working as oracles. So why am I, the person who came to Gilded Vale in search of land, abandoning my newly conquered keep to search for a cure to my super-powers?

What? I don't really get these points

Both of these can certainly make sense.
Mainly, why the fuck wouldn't you try to go after any tangeble clue to solve your problem? And why would it be so unthinkable to go after the solution if there still was a danger?

For short: How is the alternative sitting on your ass doing nothing and hope that you aren't going to be insane such a logical step to take for you?

Because if that was the case for example people in real life wouldn't seek out mystics and alternative medicine for their medical problems.


As said before I haven't played yet though. So, maybe this will make a lot more sense then.

 

[Jaedar]

It's funny when people point at motb and say: "See, this is why we can't have cool mechanics in our rpgs any more, casuals dislike them!"

Did I say funny? I meant sad. "Casuals don't like it, therefore it is good exclusion" as an argument. In the codex of all places.

 

[hiver]

How is the alternative sitting on your ass doing nothing and hope that you aren't going to be insane such a logical step to take for you?

because the fucking game does absolutely nothing to show you will go insane. If you do sit o your ass and do nothing - nothing ever happens!

So its completely non logical to accept that as any kind of real fucking motivator, get it?

As said before I haven't played yet though.

Ohhh... look... its an argument form ignorance.

How fucking stupid do you have to be to go and argue about anything while knowing fuck all about it?

And that AFTER felipepepe explained the details of it directly and factually. moron!



Jaedar
yes, thats exactly what i meant with it. we should not dislike or criticize any design decision made because casuals will be angry.

 

[felipepepe]

How is the alternative sitting on your ass doing nothing and hope that you aren't going to be insane such a logical step to take for you?

because the fucking game does absolutely nothing to show you will go insane. If you do sit o your ass and do nothing - nothing ever happens!

Exactly. For all the gameplay options you can toggle, like "Bottomless Stash" and "Main before Kill", having an optional "dementia timer" would greatly improve the story.

 

[Duraframe300]

How is the alternative sitting on your ass doing nothing and hope that you aren't going to be insane such a logical step to take for you?

because the fucking game does absolutely nothing to show you will go insane. If you do sit o your ass and do nothing - nothing ever happens!

So its completely non logical to accept that as any kind of real fucking motivator, get it?

As said before I haven't played yet though.

Ohhh... look... its an argument form ignorance.

How fucking stupid do you have to be to go and argue about anything while knowing fuck all about it?

I was arguing from the points. They didn't make sense to me out of context. That's why I was asking in it not making a statement.

Also I still don't get it. I get that the game doesn't make the point clear enough. And thats certainly a valid complaint.

But, it is still a possiblity and as such a threat. As I mentioned people in the real world constantly take preventive measures to avoid a scenario thats only a possiblity. (Angelina Jolie as a recent example)
So, why is it so hard to make up an motivation to go after the threat?

If anything the game would fail at not providing you the option to not go after them. Just like New Vegas fails to give an option to say "fuck you* to the mojave wasteland.

 

[hiver]

All im actually reading between the lines there is that you dont want to feel disappointed by some features of the game because you did not play it and you want to feel its AWESOOOMMMEEE... for whatever the fuck reasons.

Are you capable of understanding the old rule of "show - dont tell"?
What the fuck more can i explain to you that felipepepe already fucking didnt?


Personally, im not that disappointed with that specific implementation since i play the game to experience its gameplay and the story and i already given up on any kind of motivation really getting to me from these idiotic fucking vidya gaems made for dumbfucks and devolved "casuals" retards regardless of who finances them. All i see is devs going into Pavlovian panic mode as soon as a single devolved subhuman inbred shitstain starts screaming and crying on their forums. No balls, no guts, no anything.
Even when specific designs get crowdfunded by different audience!

Last games that actually motivated me with something more in its presentation of the main plot, rather then just idiotically telling me i should feel motivated, were PST and BG2.


But, lets say... compared to mindboggling idiocy and utter stupidity of Wasteland 2 - PoE story is interesting enough to follow through even if there is no direct motivation you will actually feel.

 

[felipepepe]

But, it is still a possiblity and as such a threat. As I mentioned people in the real world constantly take preventive measures to avoid a scenario thats only a possiblity. (Angelina Jolie as a recent example)
So, why is it so hard to make up an motivation to go after the threat?

If anything the game would fail at not providing you the option to not go after them. Just like New Vegas fails to give an option to say "fuck you* to the mojave wasteland.

New Vegas is an open world game, you can't leave the Mojave, but you can go anywhere from the start. The main quest tells you to hunt Benny for revenge, but you can ignore it completely until you get another, better reason to find him - the platinum chip.

PoE is story-driven, divided into acts and gating your progress. Act 1 has you go after the other Watcher because he may have answers, I get that. But Act 2 has nothing, you go to Defiance Bay because the game won't allow you to go anywhere else. Even if you take the "Angelina Jolie approach", Defiance Bay has multiple "solutions" to your problem, including a Sanitarium solely devoted to helping Awakened people, but that's never brought up. Your desperate character doesn't seek help there. You never do anything or suffer anyting from this horrible insanity menace... Being Awakened is just an extremely weak plot device to give you a reason to pursue the bad guy.

 

[Irenaeus]

But, it is still a possiblity and as such a threat. As I mentioned people in the real world constantly take preventive measures to avoid a scenario thats only a possiblity. (Angelina Jolie as a recent example)
So, why is it so hard to make up an motivation to go after the threat?

If anything the game would fail at not providing you the option to not go after them. Just like New Vegas fails to give an option to say "fuck you* to the mojave wasteland.

New Vegas is an open world game, you can't leave the Mojave, but you can go anywhere from the start. The main quest tells you to hunt Benny for revenge, but you can ignore it completely until you get another, better reason to find him - the platinum chip.

PoE is story-driven, divided into acts and gating your progress. Act 1 has you go after the other Watcher because he may have answers, I get that. But Act 2 has nothing, you go to Defiance Bay because the game won't allow you to go anywhere else. Even if you take the "Angelina Jolie approach", Defiance Bay has multiple "solutions" to your problem, including a Sanitarium solely devoted to helping Awakened people, but that's never brought up. Your desperate character doesn't seek help there. You never do anything or suffer anyting from this horrible insanity menace... Being Awakened is just an extremely weak plot device to give you a reason to pursue the bad guy.

You go to Defiency Bay in Act 2 to investigate who may hold the cure for your impeding madness. Pay more attention to the story next time. Seems like you people can't read more than a few lines. Must be the MTV generation and that ADHD I keep hearing about.

 

[hiver]

NV main plot motivation was also complete garbage and irrelevant to the player because the game was TELLING you what happened and how motivated you should fucking feel, instead of letting you experience it.
- just thought to point that out.

also, i dont think Angelina is well, generally speaking... and i feel sorry for her.

You go to Defiency Bay in Act 2 to investigate who may hold the cure for your impeding madness. Pay more attention to the story next time. Seems like you people can't read more than a few lines. Must be the MTV generation and that ADHD I keep hearing about.

The point esteemed colleague is making is that as actual motivation the player should feel, the way the plot is presented - is close to zero.

What you are saying is that the story is interesting enough to follow up and see where it goes.

Different things.

 

[Irenaeus]

Wtf is the Angelina approach? Collecting children from exotic places like monocled gentlemen collect animal trophies?

 

[hiver]

No... and she gave those kids best childhood anyone can have so stfu.
or show me your happy kids.

 

[Irenaeus]

 

[felipepepe]

You go to Defiency Bay in Act 2 to investigate who may hold the cure for your impeding madness.

Except that your madness isn't impending at all, and all your "investigation for a cure" boils down to hunting the Leaden Key. You don't make any effort, or suffer any consequences otherwise. Even Aloth tries the Sanitarium, but you won't.

 

[hiver]

 

[Irenaeus]

 

[hiver]

... what now?

I expect better sarcasm from you, ffs...

 

[Irenaeus]

Let's change the subject

 

[Johannes]

Don't be a

, Irenaeus.