Everyone says BG3 is a great starting point, and I’ve even set it to the lowest difficulty, but I’m still struggling to get anywhere. I know nothing about D&D, so the combat system just feels really overwhelming and restrictive. Like, being able to cast a spell once or twice before needing to rest at camp feels weird to me.
On the flip side, I’m loving the visuals, the voice acting, the characters, and the story. It’s just the combat that’s throwing me off. I think I might be playing it too much like a JRPG or something like Mass Effect or Skyrim, which probably isn’t the right approach.
Any tips on how to actually get into CRPGs? Or is there maybe a different game that’s a bit more beginner-friendly?
Very interesting analysis! I will definitely watch the movie. I usually don’t play strategy games, but BG3 got so much praise I really wanted to see what it is about.
I even want to try playing an actual table-top RPG, but I don’t have friends. Perhaps I should try playing one online.
Lots of games get praise, doesn’t mean you’ll like them.
Generally, smaller markets/groups of people tend to be the loudest. Case in point, Souls-like fans. These people dump on any game that is accessible to normal people, and they love their uber-hard games. They love that you can’t beat them. They love that they frustrate you. They’re a very vocal minority of gamers. Hollow Knight Silksong may end up being 2025’s game of the year, and it probably deserves it, but most people can’t play it (or at least, get very far). The game is stupidly hard and its gameplay is obtuse by design. But, there are people who love that, and they will sing its praises from the rooftops. Hell, I’m not a fan of that kind of game, and I’m rooting for Silksong. It’s $20, it’s a Metroidvania side-scroller, and it’s fucking gorgeous. I want it to succeed, I don’t even care that I can’t play it. But I’m holding out for Bloodstained II, which is all of that but accessible to the masses. Anyone can pick it up and work at it and beat it eventually — at least the first one was like that. Sure, a couple bosses seem unfair, but once you get the hang of it? Not hard at all. I play the first one every couple years.
The only real accessible CRPG I found was Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic. That one was just fun, had a great story, and never got in the way of the fun. Except the underwater level where you move at quarter speed for no good reason. And I got lost in the forest (Kashyyyk, where the Wookiees live) but other than that? Thoroughly loved it. And I’m not a fan of CRPGs. Anything that gets in the way of fun, I’m not gonna like.
If you like old Bioware like KOTOR and like accessible CRPGs you should give Jade Empire a shot.