Struggling to Enjoy the Campaign – Anyone Else?
" The plot just falls apart for me after act4/5 spoilers
Spoiler
the act4/5 bosses refuse to die, none of it makes sense to me beside the fact story needs them to progress, but this could of been handled better.
Act4 boss had flesh scourge yet Hoodies healed him, but not Count Geonor? Then act 5 (end of prelude) is even worse, Dory being ok with us slaughtering the very last of his peepol.. then we don't kill the couple, they just get the same line 'don't be bad, mmmkay' like act4 boss. compared this to previous acts its such a drastic change it threw me off so much... i might make a thread about it if it still bugs me later. This is all before how unsatisfying it is to fight a long boss fight for them to... live and join us after dorky dialogue? Dory didn't bother me since plot and him using a mechsuit made more sense, and the one-off twist would be actually refreshing... Last edited by AintCare#6513 on Sep 12, 2025, 11:37:51 AM
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I've come to the realization over the years that a good game doesn't have to have a good story.
Thats ok. These are game developers, not literary powerhouses. Seldom, and I mean very seldom, does a game have good character development, good dialogue, compelling arcs, etc. If I get a whiff of cheesy exposition, I'll skip everything else. This game isn't any different. Out of curiosity, I listened to what what was happening in one of my playthroughs and it was typically bad. So bad, I skipped all dialogue in act 4. I don't care about any of these characters. The only games that had a story that interested me enough to listen to everything was RDR2 and Soul Reaver. Elden Ring had some interesting bits but that was because it was so odd. I mean, a village full of jar people.....what? I used this as an example because the cheesefest story isn't what makes the campaign in this game bad. It's how slow it is. The maps are too big. The combat is too slow. I don't want to use every. single. ability. for every mob pack. I need an oh shit ult-like ability in case everything goes south. Dont get that here. Granted, my playstyle is vastly different than how a lot of people play. In most games I play, I remap everything to home row. That way the F key is notched and I never lose my place. A is no CD dot/port S is utility D is AOE or utility F is primary G is panic This allows me to shift games and characters a little easier to some extent. If this is the combo style gameplay GGG wants then it fits my style. The game however, doesn't fit this. What GGG wants doesn't always jive with what we are given. In order to be effective, we have to lean into our primary. In order for what they want to work, we would need an additional 50 passive points, if not more. That was a bit of a ramble. |
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Well I never cared for lore in games myself, but poe2 felt different, characters, MC comments, VA (Lachlann, Asala, Risu, I listen to them each time i play) its all memorable, some more some less, the act4 does loose its edge a bit but there is still a specific mood and characters have flavor, the interaction are engaging even just by listening. Navali story is esoteric/philosophical, while the young man (the one that gets executed for the same crime the main boss gets a pardon- this is also ok with me, it feels unfair but real) has a very down to earth demeanor and realistic lines. But the aforementioned is just so hard to stomach for me lol
and like i mentioned, beside the lore itelf- not slaying the act bosses (multiple times) is just... unsatisfying/disheartening Last edited by AintCare#6513 on Sep 12, 2025, 10:12:55 AM
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The campaign is fine the first time. Tolerable the second time. A complete slog the third time. The campaign is the main reason I hate when I get the urge to make an alt to try a new class.
Don't get me wrong, I want to continue the story and can't wait to see what happens in the next acts. But I don't want to see it over and over and over and over. I think the campaign and the story is fine, even decent. But I only want to see it one time per league. I feel like we shouldn't be forced to replay the same campaign over and over in SC simply because we want to make an alt. If there was a way to unlock skipping the campaign once you beat it on one character per league, that would be fantastic. I feel like people would take a deeper breath if they knew they could just be like "I just gotta clear the campaign once and then I'm free to do whatever." And then not worry about it again until the next big update. As it stands right now, the only thing keeping me from making alts and trying new classes is the knowledge that I have to do the campaign again.... and by the time they release the game, who knows how damn long it'll be? Last edited by FateOfNines#4224 on Sep 12, 2025, 10:21:41 AM
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" damn, I had not thought of that, but now I can't unsee it. Similarly, at one point in act4, The chieftain NPC guy just slaughters right away the guy that tried to sell us off to the enemy, going like "traitors deserve death", but when that chieftain goes against everyone, becomes mad and destroys his village, we go "ah silly boi, don't do that again, common now!" for me it's Alva that is just the cringiest. I get the "ambitious and excited treasure seeking explorer" type, but it goes too hard and feels more like a mix between indiana jones and Jim Carey's Ace Ventura. Yet somehow it was fun, for a first playthrough, not sure I'll be finding it as interesting the next times I got to go though them. Really enjoyed the interlude, I wonder if it's going to stay in the story. Last edited by Krymz_#9412 on Sep 12, 2025, 10:31:05 AM
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" ha yeah Alva has her charm even being annoying/dorky. plus on top, if you play a witch, her lines/comments towards Alva are just perfection lol- one of the most enjoyable things in the game for me, had me pausing many times from laughter |
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I'm enjoying the campaign myself.
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" Ah yeah, that was a bit of a surprise. But then, it does make some sense :
Spoiler
In Act 1, 'Hoodie' didn't have The Weapon yet ! Which is supposed to be able to cleanse Corruption. If anything, the surprise was that The Weapon itself would create/amplify Corruption on that island... but then we also clearly don't understand what The Weapon actually is at this point of the story... Otherwise, by sparing the Chieftain, the player is shown to be more magnanimous than him. (I wonder what the voicelines for the Witch are for this ?) I'm not going to comment on the Interlude part 3, since I've not reached that point yet. Last edited by BlueTemplar85#0647 on Sep 12, 2025, 10:57:54 AM
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" ah sry about spoilers, will edit the other comment that's a good point about the weapon! i like that act4 spoilers
Spoiler
i played the witch but i must of skipped the dialogues or was just not interested after hearing the 'its ok just don't do it again', then even the final cut scene twisted the knife after the chieftain does the 'bro gesture'.
edit: just went back to hear him out, and witch nailed it like always 'some lessons are hard to stomach' while i don't like this, i think it makes the story good/engaging since it drives certain emotions like the pardon vs execution mentioned earlier, or the insecurities and hypocrisy of a brave warrior not taking responsibility for his actions. the 'mercy' shown to him might be even viewed as humiliation, sometimes considered worse than death esp to people of this class. I think my main problem is the act bosses not being killed... consecutively, multiple times. but then MC didn't kill any of them, altho Asala did a magnificent job on her part, just epic ending to that fight... even MC creating some A-Team of daemons, psychopaths, and traitors don't bother me, i actually kind alike it. I have to ponder on this a bit more. Last edited by AintCare#6513 on Sep 12, 2025, 3:51:47 PM
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