Divinity: Original Sin Kickstarter Update #3, $236,922 and Counting
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Will this have DRM?
No. The box version will not have DRM. The GOG.com version and the version of larianvault.com will not have DRM. The Steam version will not have keys to fill in or forms to fill out.
What is the status on Mac and Linux?
Linux and Mac is something that was planned from the start. This is our engine, so we can do with it what we want. It had build targets for OpenGL (the graphics renderer on Mac and Linux) that actually worked at some point, but along the way we decided to postpone that support and focus on gameplay.
We are still going to do this, but probably after the Windows version is finished.
All the owners of Divinity: Original Sin, however, will receive these versions for free.
Will this be on consoles?
We are focusing on the PC version first. This also means that we are creating the game and the user interfaces for optimal use on a PC. If we do make a console version, we will do this after releasing the PC version. If we do a console version, we will re-write the UI to tailor it to the console.
Can I back this with PayPal?
We are working on this. It's not difficult to do, but we want to wait a bit because the pledges through PayPal do not count in our Kickstarter total. And we need to figure out the more logistic way of handling the rewards done through PayPal.
Shipping outside US? I thought you were from Belgium? That's Europe!
Yes, but we're on the US Kickstarter, and the only options we have, are "No Shipping", "US Shipping", and "Non-US Shipping". We are looking into a solution for this. If we can organize shipping within Europe, and the costs are lowered, we will change that.
Why is this not available in [language here]?
We are localizing in English, French, German, Polish and Russian, because we have distributors there. If we had a distribution deal in Italy for instance, we would localize in Italian.
Can I play co-op over LAN?
Yes, you can.
If my friend has the Steam version, and I have the GOG version, can we still play together?
Yes, but obviously not over Steamworks.
I'm going to play this in single player. Do I still have to walk around with both characters?
Yes. And you'll probably be walking around with 4 to 6 characters, not just two :)
Think of this as a party based game. It is not an action RPG. You can solo if you want to (just tell party members to "stop following"), but combat will be hard as nails if you try to take enemies on single-handedly. You will need a well-balanced party.
Do monsters level up or become stronger the bigger your party is?
No. Monsters do not scale to your level. If you are level 1 and you see a level 10 monster: run. If you are trying to take on 10 monsters all by yourself while the rest of your party is somewhere else: good luck. Combat is balanced against a party.
If you want to try it with one party member, and succeed, you'll get all the XP. (Total XP is shared over the party.)
I'm going to play this in single player. Isn't the co-op design going to be in my way?
No. You won't even notice it. It doesn't limit or change the game.
I'm going to play this in single player. Isn't the co-op dialogue system going to be a bit weird? It's like talking to myself!
What's wrong with talking to yourself?! You can roleplay both characters!
Or you can choose dialogue AI personalities. For instance, you can have a loyal friend (who always does what you want), a liberal (who'll always take the liberal point of view), a mad dog (interesting stuff) and so forth. You haven't played something like this before, but it's fun.
Do the henchmen join this co-op dialogue system?
No, it is always a dialogue between the two heroes.
(But modders can use this system for entire party discussions.)
What about character development?
Character development is classless. You define your starting stats freely yourself at character creation, and you choose your own starting skills. From then on, you can freely develop your character and pick skills from any of the several schools.
Of those schools, 4 are magic (earth, wind, fire, water) but there are also other schools dedicated to combat/warrior skills and ranger/survivor skills. The exact amount of schools and skills is dependent on the success of our Kickstarter campaign.
You get one skillpoint and one stat point per level up. We currently guess the level cap is around 20.
Can I re-spec my character?
You will be able to re-spec your character by training, but it will cost you. A lot.
It also depends on the difficulty level at some levels, you can't.
Do I control everyone in combat? Can I let AI take over in combat?
You control everyone in combat. Well, not the enemies, obviously, but turn by turn, you have to tell your party members what to do. That includes both heroes, your henchmen and your summons. You cannot let AI control your party members in combat. In multiplayer, each player controls his hero, his personal henchman, and his summoned creature. (Each hero can hire one henchman, and can summon one creature.)
How do I control my party outside of combat?
Outside of combat, everything is realtime. You select the party leader with shortcut keys or by clicking his portrait. When you walk around with the leader, the other party members follow him. However, you can tell party members to stop following ("wait here").
How do I control my party outside of combat when I'm in multiplayer?
Each hero can have one henchman and one summon. In multiplayer, your personal henchman and summon follow you around (unless you tell them to "wait here"). Your henchman and summon can not be controlled (or dismissed) by the other player character.
Is there friendly fire in combat?
Yes, of course. Even out of combat. We want you to wince and flinch when your partner shouts "FIREBALL"!
But loot is shared?
No it is not. It drops on the ground. First come, first serve.
Do NPCs have schedules?
We focused on reactivity instead of simulation. We are hoping that the Kickstarter campaign will be successful so we can actually add schedules via a stretch goal.
How long will it take me to play through Divinity: Original Sin?
This is always a tough question. We think we are making a 40 hour game. But people have different playing styles. If you're good at combat, and you don't want to do everything there is to do (you don't bother to lift every stone, talk to everyone, explore every square inch), you may finish it faster. If you want to see and do everything, you may not have finished it after 60 hours.
As a reference: when we made the original Divine Divinity, we thought we had a 20 hour game, but it can be finished quite fast once you know how to. On the other hand, we have reports of people spending over a hundred hours in the game. So I repeat: tough question.
How big is the world?
The world currently consists of four big zones. There is a short loading screen in between zones, but you can play around in one zone for hours without ever seeing a loading screen, so one zone is actually pretty large. It's possible that more zones are added as a result of the Kickstarter campaign.
OMG I hope I'll be able to save anywhere then!
Of course you can. It's a Divinity game.
When is alpha? When is beta?
We expect alpha this Summer. Beta should be September or earlier.
Do you have lockpicking? Sneaking? Pickpocketing?
Yes.
How will crafting work?
You simply drag one item unto another. (In your inventory or in the world.) You can experiment with combinations, but there will be tips and books lying around to push you in the right direction. At the moment, you don't need a special skill to create an item combination.
Can I customize the henchmen?
Henchmen start out as a certain "build" and with equipment, but once you hire them, you can totally change their equipment, and manage their inventories. And if they level, you choose their statpoint distribution and their skill upgrades.
Do the henchmen have personalities?
No, they don't. You can talk to them, but only to hire them or dismiss them. Giving them personalities (so that they are more involved, have a story) will be one of our stretchgoals.
Will I be able to sheathe my weapons?
Yes. Just like in Divine Divinity, you are be able to toggle between "peace" and "combat" mode, and items and NPCs will react accordingly.
For instance, if you click on a friendly NPC with your sword drawn, he will ask you to put your weapon away before addressing him. You can then either apologize, or call him out.
Are there exclamation marks above NPC's heads if they have a quest for you?
No, there are not. You have to explore, talk to people, find items, read books, interpret and think to "find quests".
If you did see exclamation marks in the video or in screenshots, those are the ones currently indicating that the 2 main heroes want to talk to eachother. The way we indicate this, will change. The party member will simply say "I want to talk to you", inviting you to start a dialogue with them. (Inviting. Not forcing.)
Will this have full voice over?
We cannot do full voice with the budget we have. At the moment, we only plan to do "important characters" with unique lines.
Also, NPCs can draw lines from a database with information and lore, and we don't want NPCs sharing the same voice, or NPCs that change their voice in the middle of a dialogue.
What happens if one of your party members dies?
If both heroes die in battle, it's game over. If one hero dies in battle, and the other hero survives, the dead one can be revived (at a cost).
If a henchman dies, you can also resurrect him (at a cost), or leave him for dead and hire another one. (However, the more henchmen you leave behind, the more the other ones will start asking for their services.) If a summon dies, you have to summon him again.
In your second video update, the enemies' corpses disappeared
Yes, because they don't have a dying animation yet and no corpse model. This is a game still in development, so you'll still see plenty of stub and work in progress elements in the screenshots and videos we post.
