Just picked up DOS1 in the steam sale; just started playing only 4 hours into it. I started a tactician run, I’ve been party wiped about 8 times so far.
so far I enjoy it, great voice acting. Some of the UX improvements in BG3 would be welcome, but its not too bad.
It’s neat because you see the arc of the Larian engine over time.
I still distinctly remember the first time I used a bedroll in Divinity: Original Sin 2 and knew immediately it’d be impossible for me to ever go back to the first one.
I enjoyed the original D:OS a lot more later once I had more chances for XP. Both D:OS games are brutal about punishing you for trying encounters while underleveled, to the point where I didn’t feel like I had much flexibility. That’s tough when freedom to roam and not worry about skipping things–or saving them for replays–is one of the things I most like about Western RPGs. I wasn’t a fan of spending a ton of time in town early on, too, for that reason. Was itching to get to the combat again and I just kept getting stomped. So yeah, okay, I’ll go chat everyone up for every last bit of experience.