It’s been a little bit over a year since Larian Studios released their mega hit co-op multiplayer fantasy RPG game “Divinity: Original Sin” (which got released to PC in June last year). And during that time “Divinity” has won over 150 Game of the Year awards, received Gamespot´s “PC Game of The Year 2014” award, and has sold over 500,000 copies since its release last year. And nothing of that would have been possible without the help of Kickstarter and all the backers of “Divinity: Original Sin” (the game collected over one million dollars in total on the 26th of April, 2014). So as you might imagine, the Divinity fans have been really hungry for a sequel to Divinity: Original Sin. Well, the fan’s prayers have been heard. As Larian Studios launched a Kickstarter campaign for Divinity: Original Sin 2 (the game is only in development for PC at this time) yesterday.
Well, so far “Divinity: Original Sin 2” is doing really great on Kickstarter, as Larian Studios has “almost” reached their $600,000 Kickstarter goal in less than a day! So I wouldn´t be surprised to hear that Larian Studios will add more supported platforms and stretched goals for Divinity: Original Sin 2 in the near future. And by the looks of it, “Original Sin 2” contains everything that the fans loved in the original game, plus a handful of brand-new features, better graphics and much more. Speaking of new features, “Original Sin 2” is said to offer “a strong focus on systematic gameplay,”and “your origins affect who you are and what chances you get in life”, plus a “well-grounded narrative.” (that will offer a more mature kind of RPG gameplay experience for sure). And here are some of the most interesting features in “Original Sin 2” in my opinion:
– You’ll be able to recruit up to three companions
– In multiplayer, up to 4 players can play together, either cooperatively or competitively
– A new dialog system will give you many more options to persuade both NPCs and your companions. All dialogs in the game are different
depending on who is doing the talking.
– A new crafting system that provides you with good incentives to use crafting to its fullest.
– Skill Crafting, a new mechanic that lets you combine different skills and spells to create powerful new ones.
– The combat system has been upgraded in Divinity: Original Sin 2 (new types of tactical opportunities and challenges awaits you!)
– New forms of elemental interaction (push/pull mechanics will be added to the final version of the game)
– More skill schools, talents, abilities & spells
– Hundreds of skills and spells to pick from
– New creatures and enemies, plenty of new environmental interactions, and a big, varied world full of interesting characters and surprises.
– A more grounded and serious narrative will ensure that you’ll feel invested in the world, but rest assured that we won’t forget to make you smile.
As for gameplay, looks and feels. “Original Sin 2” is a top-down, cooperative/multiplayer (you can play up to four players at the same time) RPG with pen & paper RPG-like levels. In other words, “Original Sin 2” aims to offer a deeper and more hardcore like RPG gameplay experience (which is something that most of today’s RPG games are lacking off). So what about the background story then? Well, the sequel takes place generations after the events of Divinity: Original Sin, and Bishop Alexandar “the Innocent” has taken control of the divine order, and sourcerers are now criminals. So anyone who´s possessing any kind of source powers will be hunted down and stripped from their powers. And due to the fact that there is a bounty on your head, you have to take on Bishop Alexandar in order to become free from guilt, burden and shame. That´s of course easier said then done. As you can´t trust anyone, and the world around you is anything but kind to you. And this hard quest will take you through lost temples, war-torn battlefields, majestic cities and deadly wastelands.
I don´t know about you, but I really like the sound of this. And who knows? Divinity: Original Sin 2 might actually top the original game on all fronts. Let´s hope for the best!
Robin “V-Act” Ek
The Gaming Ground
Twitter: @TheGamingGround
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Tags: Divinity, Divinity Original Sin 2, Kickstarter, Larian Studios, Original Sin