Oh, god, that would be a terrible idea - no more than down to an 8, maybe only a 9. Honestly I hate going below 10 in anything - unlike DnD a 3 here is going to be a massive hit to anything, from deflection to your health/endurance per level. A 9 is probably going to be something you don’t notice too much, maybe an 8, but below that seems like a really bad idea, on Hard and above at least.
robc04
2024
Should I be 12th level before I …
[spoiler]Descend the pit? I just turned level 10 and secured the favor of one of the gods. I’m not sure if I should try and complete a couple quests before heading down or if level 10 is OK at this point.
Loved fighting the dragon. Much prefer fewer tough enemies to the mobs that I’ve been fighting.
[/spoiler]
I would definitely be level 12 for that final battle - it’s one of the toughest fights in the game.
robc04
2026
Are there any opportunities to earn a bunch of XP once you …
Maybe, just maybe, people who have sand kicked in their face all day in their regular lives about this would appreciate it if their escapist entertainment didn’t do the same thing. It might not be a big deal to you, and you might be able to turn up your nose and say, “just ignore it,” but I am pretty sure you are not the subject of discrimination, suspicion, and ridicule on a daily basis either.
Or, to make it easier to understand, STOP YOUR WHINING.
ShivaX
2028
Not really. The way XP is in the game, you basically only get it from quests or killing something new.
Which is something I noticed as a bit of an issue when I was trying my Evil Bastard playthrough - the loss of XP from quests is extremely significant. Especially early on when you’re doing the little crap around the first town. I was down at least a full level with no place to really go (worse I’m trying PotD, so tough fights are often just unbeatable if you’re too low).
I am playing aggressive/cruel, though I’m treating it more as a mercenary (that’s even my background) - pay me, and I’ll sort your shit out. Reward me, and I’ll still say something super cruel. Also, I’m prone to start a fight at the drop of a hat.
But, I’m not sure you can play as a psychopath though. Just like in real pen and paper, if there isn’t going to be a way to motivate your character, you aren’t going to have a lot to do besides sit in your cottage and contemplate how super evil you are. :)
Rob, once you cross into the area you did, the game creates a special pre-ending auto-save for you, if you need it.
robc04
2030
Maybe I’ll tale the plunge and see how I do.
What a load of poppycock. Grow up.
Let’s be honest here. It is just a fact that almost every person is going to be unhappy if the person they’re getting intimate with turns out to be… significantly outside their expectations. Calling this by itself discrimination just seems unreasonable. So this comment could totally be taken in an innocent way in my opinion.
However, reading the person’s comments about it, he clearly meant it to offend, so there is that.
Beyond that, it is an area of the game that most people probably won’t even see. I didn’t even know about it before the internet drama.
olaf
2034
You are a 100% right in that the change is meaningless and that I would never have known about it. I read maybe 10 of the ‘memorials’ before writing them off for good and never looking at another one.
But I don’t want to be sensitive to anyone in this context. If people don’t like the game, they can choose to not buy the game. Or not play the game. No one should not be empowered to have art censored because 'offended. Who does that? And then, far worse, who listens to these idiots and actually goes ahead with changing stuff? This is a small thing, a meaningless thing, but its not going to stop here. And the fact that Obsidian caved has an effect on their work going forward and other people’s as well.
What if this happened with movies? Books? Music? That they caved so quickly is absurd and embarrassing. It was not even an explicit ‘trans’ joke. The text is ambiguous. We don’t know if either party was ‘trans’, its certainly not spelled out literally.
Did you even read the fucking memorial? Its not kicking sand in anyone’s face man. Its a joke thing. From the actual text of it, no one is trans. No one is gay. We don’t know anything beyond what is included in the text of the memorial. But fuck even if it was something that called out someone as trans or as gay, outraged fringe groups should not be able to dictate what makes it into a videogame. Or a movie. Or a book. Or…ANYTHING. If they don’t like it, they dont have to fucking buy it. They dont have to play it. Its a perfect system. Don’t want to be offended? DONT CONSUME OFFENSIVE CONTENT!
CF_Kane
2035
I don’t understand this line of reasoning in the slightest. You concede that you are fine with removing the joke, as long as “it was a few LGBT people complaining politely.” However, because some people were less polite in their reaction, you oppose Obsidian’s decision to remove the joke. Why is it less objectionable if some people are impolite in the way they express their objections?
Some people found it upsetting. You (and many other people) did not. I’m not certain what value the joke has to you (and others) that supports retaining it, given that clearly it had a negative effect on other people’s enjoyment of the game. Seems like a pretty simple decision from Obsidian for me, given that the offending joke doesn’t have any relevance to the story or any other component of the game.
CF_Kane
2036
I disagree with the premise, but this argument is lacking on its own terms. It would have a little more basis if the content of the memorial had anything to do with the game or artistic vision of Obsidian, but it does not. They didn’t write it. Its inclusion in the game does not alter the progression of the story or meaningfully alter the experience of the game, EXCEPT for people who encounter it and find it hurtful.
If the memorial were central to the story, this argument would have more weight. People could reasonably decide to avoid playing the game and engaging with the content they find offensive on that basis. I think they still have a right to criticize such content, though. I’m not sure why criticism creates such a violent reaction from people who disagree.
Razgon
2037
You HAVE to be stealthed to find the hidden things, though.
Quaro
2038
How did people here about this and when did they hear about it? Because I didn’t see any complaints about the joke. Nothing on twitter or forums talking about the game. I guess it was visible enough that Josh Sawyer tweeted a response to someone saying he’d look into or whatever but I certainly wasn’t aware of a loud witch-hunt. But as far I see it was a small group of people who tweeted at him, he politely said he’s look into it, and the issue was done.
The thing I did see was a massive explosion in response to the tweet from Josh that he’d look it. I guess Total Biscuit did a video on it and then I saw outraged people everyone, all over twitter and over pretty much every forum talking about the topic. If there’s an outrage machine here it seems like it’s quite literally 1000x louder in the opposite side.
ShivaX
2039
Yeah, I never heard anything about it. The bitching about it after the fact was fucking everywhere though.
Bateau
2040
According to the author of the limerick Obsidian reached out to him and asked him if he wants to change it and he decided to do it, to “spare Obsidian the PR nonsense and allow them to focus on the game instead”.
I’ll try to find the source for his post, not having any luck right now.
Squee
2041
Beat the game. It was no glorious new Infinity Engine game and I was annoyed by things every step of the way (Both mechanically and aesthetically, although not in regard to the graphics. They did a fantastic job there) but overall it was still pretty good. Maybe a bit higher on the totem pole than Dragon Age Origins which is kinda the high water mark for post BG2 Bioware.
High point was starting the endless paths at level 9 and finally killing the master below and reaching level 10. Some of the deep fights in there felt closer to some Baldur’s Gate to me than most everything else, and strangely enough some of the trash enemy encounters down there were tougher than the final fight in the main story. Did get tired of NPCs getting in the way eventually so I just killed everyone in Twin Elms, so if anyone else reaches that point and stops caring then know you can go hog wild. You’ll miss out on a pile of XP I assume (Had a fair number of quests both show up and fail during the purge) but it’s not really needed unless you’re playing PotD since that’s where they actually raise stats on enemies.
Implying that a particular lifestyle is so hideous and repulsive, that it would force someone else to kill themselves, isn’t exactly a great self-esteem booster.
Stop whining, you babies. Waaah waah waaah. The more you complain about it, the more ridiculous you seem.
