The rain lashes at my cloak as I arrive at Gilded Vale, the first town
on this road. I am met by a group of humans, dwarves and elves –
all hanging by the neck from the branches of a grand oak tree. Local
townspeople tell me of a curse afflicting many of the families living
nearby. The Lord believes that by having anyone afflicted hanged, the
curse will be lifted, and his own family will be spared.
Pillars of Eternity is a wonderful combination of modern fantasy
and mature themes, bringing back memories of Planescape: Torment
and Baldur’s Gate. 2014 may have marked the beginning of a RPG
renaissance with games like Divinity: Original Sin, Wasteland 2, and
Shadowrun, but this is the closest in feeling to the Infinity Engine
games of yesteryear. Pillars of Eternity is a return to the roots of
Obsidian Entertainment, putting together Chris Avellone (Planescape:
Torment), Tim Cain (Fallout), and Josh Sawyer (Icewind Dale II), who
created some of the best RPGs we’ve ever seen.
Beginning as a Kickstarter project back in September 2012, it
raised almost $4 million from more than 70,000 backers. The original
pitch was to make something with a combination of the central hero,
memorable companions and the epic exploration of Baldur’s Gate, the
fun, intense combat and dungeon diving of Icewind Dale and tie it all
together with the emotional writing and mature thematic exploration
of Planescape: Torment.
It was clear that there was a demand, as it hit $1 million dollars
within 48 hours. These deep, strategic fantasy games were a dying genre
until recently, as the RPG went the way of Skyrim and Dragon Age –
becoming more action-packed and cinematic.
I personally had never played an RPG like this before, but found
myself picking up the controls and thoroughly enjoying myself almost
instantly. My first RPG was Fable, so I’m more used to the button
mashing combat of modern RPG. Using a tactical real-time with pause
system, manoeuvring your party and coordinating attacks and abilities
is the key to success – it’s easy to learn but hard to master.
There are 11 classes, all of which are playable, but you can only
take an additional five adventurers with you in your party. Luckily, none
feel particularly weak and so any combination is viable. So far, I haven’t
run into an encounter that is beyond my level, or too easy. The game is
paced so that you’re always in a position to win, but are a