So... I want to heavily mention, it's not like this game is absolutely terrible or anything, and I'd actually give it something of a 7/10 in almost all aspects, the story is breathtakingly amazing, the graphics are a bit outdated but timeless, the combat has some interesting ideas behind it.

The issue I have with it though is the fact that the "Tactics" menu is probably one of the worst explained things in any game I've ever seen. In theory, the game gives you the illusion that you can "just set this to default and you'll be alright". The issue with that is that you won't be, not even remotely. So after you've died multiple times due to the fact that your companions start running around like headless chicken, you start to actually pay attention to this system that, so far, you've only looked at as some sort of "micromanagement optimization thingie", which then gets you into the heart of the problem:

This game has a steeper learning curve then games like Guild wars 1 or even Dark souls. Not because the gameplay itself would be hard, but because you'll have to invest many, many hours into minmaxing and theorycrafting these "tactics", at the end of which you'll probably be able to write AIs for Indie games even though you've never wrote a single line of code.

That, by itself, wouldn't be too big of an issue. The concept is pretty cool, to be honest. It allows you to set up your party the way you want, the way that fits a specific playstyle, which all in all allows a lot of unique flair (a vibe that is being brought in with the story as well, as the story feels vast and incredibly branching). The issue comes from the game being advertised by everyone and their grandmother as "casual game that anyone could play". No. It is not. I don't know what kinds of "casual laptop grandmother gamers" some of these reviewers have, but I press a massive doubt button on this.

The even better part of this slightly obfuscated and confusing system is that there's no proper explanation for it. You'll have a quick tutorial popping up, telling you very briefly that all of this exists, and that's it. If you ask around in the community, people will just tell you to "get good", or sometimes they'll downvote you or tell you that "this is probably just not your genre and you should just refund".

It's as if the community guards the secrets behind figuring out this absolute cluster♥♥♥♥ of a system, with no proper help being brought.

All of that would be *fine*, if that was the only nuisance you had to deal with. But, of course, it isn't. There's constant stutters, some graphical glitches, a few audio glitches, and ever so often the game crashed my whole PC when I alt-tabbed out of it.

Would I recommend the game? Unless you literally have 2 weeks of your life to burn just to learn the basic mechanics that make this game enjoyable, no, I would absolutely not recommend it. Not even during a 90% sale. And even if, at that point you should just get into Dark Souls, it's much simpler and easier to pick up.

As the story is absolutely 10/10 amazing, I'd still recommend you to get Dragon Age 2 or Dragon Age Inquisition instead, where the devs removed all of the clunkyness from this confusing system.

"But why are there so many good reviews on this?", well, dear reader, because some people have had 2 weeks to burn and they did their spreadsheets and PHD-level calculations to figure this system out. And yes, granted, once you reach that level, it's absolutely the most amazing experience in the world. But the path to get there is absolutely atrocious and I would not even remotely recommend going down that rabbit hole. I wouldn't say it's worth it for your average person.

Myself? I probably will go deep into this, mostly because I'm literally unemployed, unemployable and receive unconditional social welfare.

So... I want to heavily mention, it's not like this game is absolutely terrible or anything, and I'd actually give it something of a 7/10 in almost all aspects, the story is breathtakingly amazing, the graphics are a bit outdated but timeless, the combat has some interesting ideas behind it. The issue I have with it though is the fact that the "Tactics" menu is probably one of the worst explained things in any game I've ever seen. In theory, the game gives you the illusion that you can "just set this to default and you'll be alright". The issue with that is that you won't be, not even remotely. So after you've died multiple times due to the fact that your companions start running around like headless chicken, you start to actually pay attention to this system that, so far, you've only looked at as some sort of "micromanagement optimization thingie", which then gets you into the heart of the problem: This game has a steeper learning curve then games like Guild wars 1 or even Dark souls. Not because the gameplay itself would be hard, but because you'll have to invest many, many hours into minmaxing and theorycrafting these "tactics", at the end of which you'll probably be able to write AIs for Indie games even though you've never wrote a single line of code. That, by itself, wouldn't be too big of an issue. The concept is pretty cool, to be honest. It allows you to set up your party the way you want, the way that fits a specific playstyle, which all in all allows a lot of unique flair (a vibe that is being brought in with the story as well, as the story feels vast and incredibly branching). The issue comes from the game being advertised by everyone and their grandmother as "casual game that anyone could play". No. It is not. I don't know what kinds of "casual laptop grandmother gamers" some of these reviewers have, but I press a massive doubt button on this. The even better part of this slightly obfuscated and confusing system is that there's no proper explanation for it. You'll have a quick tutorial popping up, telling you very briefly that all of this exists, and that's it. If you ask around in the community, people will just tell you to "get good", or sometimes they'll downvote you or tell you that "this is probably just not your genre and you should just refund". It's as if the community guards the secrets behind figuring out this absolute clusterfuck of a system, with no proper help being brought. All of that would be *fine*, if that was the only nuisance you had to deal with. But, of course, it isn't. There's constant stutters, some graphical glitches, a few audio glitches, and ever so often the game crashed my whole PC when I alt-tabbed out of it. Would I recommend the game? Unless you literally have 2 weeks of your life to burn just to learn the basic mechanics that make this game enjoyable, no, I would absolutely not recommend it. Not even during a 90% sale. And even if, at that point you should just get into Dark Souls, it's much simpler and easier to pick up. As the story is absolutely 10/10 amazing, I'd still recommend you to get Dragon Age 2 or Dragon Age Inquisition instead, where the devs removed all of the clunkyness from this confusing system. "But why are there so many good reviews on this?", well, dear reader, because some people have had 2 weeks to burn and they did their spreadsheets and PHD-level calculations to figure this system out. And yes, granted, once you reach that level, it's absolutely the most amazing experience in the world. But the path to get there is absolutely atrocious and I would not even remotely recommend going down that rabbit hole. I wouldn't say it's worth it for your average person. Myself? I probably will go deep into this, mostly because I'm literally unemployed, unemployable and receive unconditional social welfare.