Game review – Divinity: Original Sin
Platform – PC (exclusive)
Developer – Larian Studios

Rating – 10/10

This game review brought to by animals with more personality than your co-workers.

Since I want to give you some insight into the types of games I play, I’m going to start with some reviews for games I personally play a lot. Let’s start this off with a bang.

For all you Steam users out there, it’s no secret that Divinity: Original Sin has been a popular title for several weeks now, even while it was in Early Access. Since I have been a little too enthusiastic with my purchases of unfinished games in the past, I figured I would wait until official release of this one. Being the Steam junkie I am, I was also going to wait for it to go on sale as I often find games aren’t worth $40+. However, this game has been receiving nothing but high praise from the RPG community, and has been widely heralded as the Baldur’s Gate 3 fans have been waiting for. Then, a few weeks ago, I noticed my friends list filling up with people playing D:OS, including one of my close friends who was raving about it. I had to bite.

Was I ever not disappointed.

ffs... Two characters to create? I'm the kinda guy who spends an hour just molding the face.

Simply put, Divinity: Original Sin is a masterpiece. It’s hard to describe just how engaging and enthralling this title is. It doesn’t hold your hand, yet the world unfolds before you as if turning the pages of a book you can’t put down.

It is a role-playing game in the truest sense. Fans of the classic turn-based combat system will absolutely love it. It brings the environment and the elements into play in with intense, destructive, and decisive battles which will leave you feeling satisfied after almost every fight. I’m not talking about a few crumbling scenery pieces, either. You can set the whole map on fire, and put it out by making it rain until there are puddles. Then, you can freeze the puddles and cause those standing on the ice to slip and fall. Control of the elements becomes very important in combat as well as in solving puzzles and disarming traps.

One well-placed lightning bolt into a pool of water = a pile of stunned orcs. Don't have any of your own party in the water, though...

The overarching story is interesting without being invasive, and even pretty funny at times. The voice cast is clever and cheeky; full of colorful and memorable characters.

Such a tragic way to go.

While it’s not a grand departure from other RPG stories, it’s no less compelling. It nods to its predecessors, and then embraces its fans with a dense, sprawling world of seemingly endless exploration and discovery. There are monsters of every size and composition. You almost never know what to expect going into each new battle. Sometimes you reign victorious with ease. Other times, you feel like the game has unleashed a wrath of anger and torment upon you, completely changing your perception of battle or it may simply wipe out your entire party in a single, fuck-your-decision-making-skills moment.

Um... Shit.

Did I mention it’s dense? I’m talking, core-of-a-dying-star, dense.  Trying to find and unlock every cave and crevasse in this game is an adventure unto itself. Just when you think you’ve carved a slice off of this game’s grandeur, it turns around and shows you it’s but a small chip off the corner. Character customization is endlessly diverse, and your bottomless inventory is merely a testament to the amount of collectables and crafting available.

Do I do good for the leadership bonus, or do I do evil for the sneaking bonus? Hmm....

If the value of a game is based on $ per hour played, then $40 for Divinity: Original Sin might be the best deal of your life. I’m 100 hours in, and I’m roughly halfway through to the end. I’m sure it has been completed in much less time… but I like to be thorough, what can I say? This game provides the environment in which one can enjoy being “he who must explore every corner,” and rewards you for it. Larian Studios has set the bar a little higher for the gaming industry.

/gameon

P.S. Talk to the animals.