Divinity II demo Impressions

Before I sit down and write out what I think of a demo, I make sure to play it many times to make sure I could really get a feel for the game. I try to realize the hidden potential locked away in the demo, and get a taste for what I’ll be in store for when the game comes out. The Divinity 2 demo just left me with a bad taste in my mouth.

I don’t really know where to start. First off, the graphics were unimpressive at best. This was incredibly disappointing because the graphics in the cutscenes were quite good. The framerate jumped and seized often, and my eyes were strained most of the time. The saturation was a bit overdone, the textures were flat and boring, and the environments were nothing new. I passed off the same hills and generic town i had seen many times before, saying to myself that this was a tutorial level, and I shouldn’t expect a frozen steampunk dungeon (or whatever floats your boat) in the demo. There were floating islands and dhips, but again, this was nothing I hadn’t seen a dozen times before. The townspeople didn’t wow me with incredibly detailed character models, either.

The animations were one thing that especially bugged me. When talking to people, it seemed like more of a breakdance competition than a conversation. They didn’t just move their hands, they seemed to sway and shake. I could choose what to say, which was interesting, but the type was so small and the words so straightforward, I lost interest in anything anyone had to say, and quickly.

The voice acting was one of the things I actually didn’t mind, but as I’ve said, the animations and dialogue was so bad, I found myself rushing through every conversation. Before too long, you gain the ability to read minds, which seems like a really awesome ability, right? Wrong. It costs hard-earned experience, and nearly every time I forked over the necessary points, I fount the result was worthless. Other dragon slayers would laugh at me, and though merchants would sometimes give me a discount, the cost was far too great. I once found out where the secret entrance to a bandit lair was, but it cost me over 10oo exp. I figured that i could have used that exp as an advantage over the bandits that I would have found anyway.

The controls are unusual, and overly complex. The combat is mapped to the face buttons, but there are seemingly too many button presses for even simple actions. One trigger makes the character jump, whilst the other brings in the camera for more of an over-the-shoulder view. Although not incredibly hard to get used to, the layout felt unnatural and I was too aware that I was playing a game the whole time.

As for the story, I was disappointed the most. I had heard that you played as an elite for of soldier, an expert in slaying dragons, and that I would have to save the world from some crazy stuff. When I actually became a ‘Dragon Knight’, the ritual was one of the most boring I’ve ever seen. Instead of some kind of proving, or test, some chick just cast a spell or something, and my eyes turned blue. I could now see ghosts, but the novelty was lost when the first met told lame jokes almost exclusively.

I happen to think that a demo should not only introduce a game’s features, but impress the player overall. It’s the developer’s chance to make gamers who are on the fence make up their minds, and hopefully buy the game when it comes out. If this was the best they could do, I’m just depressed. I kept waiting for the demo to get better, for something cool to happen, but unfortunately for me, it never did.

Playing this demo is like running a marathon. At the beginning, you’ve got high hopes. After a surprisingly short while, you slow down, and perhaps even hit the proverbial wall. You either leave at this point, or press on, hoping to at least finish. Towards the ending, you think less and less of finishing for the glory and more for the need for it all to just be over. If you do happen to complete the demo, you aren’t glad for the experience, but just glad you a done with it. Unless some major improvements can be made in the short time before the game is shipped, I have massive doubts as to anyone enjoying this game. I realize that the first has a small, but devoted following, however, Divinity 2 is looking to be a letdown in almost every way.

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