How Divinity: Original Sin 2 – Definitive Edition is Better Than Divinity: Original Sin
Divinity: Original Sin launched on Xbox One in 2016 to critical acclaim and many awards as well as nominations, but as we get closer to the release of Divinity: Original Sin 2 – Definitive Edition let’s talk about some of the differences – and improvements – between the two.
More friends, more chaos, more fun
DOS EE saw a party of two join forces and cleanse Rivellon of evil, but now the hijinks is multiplied by two. In Divinity: Original Sin 2, up to four players take up the task of restoring faith and taking on The Divine Order. It’s the only RPG of its type to offer co-op, let alone four-player co-op. How does this work? Well, drop into a players game or create new characters and begin together. A new party inventory system makes it a lot easier to manage your wears, and you’ll be able to combine your wits with the new journal to milestone your adventures and solve puzzles as a team. Or, more likely, bust that one friend out of jail for pointlessly stealing egg-shells from that one guard they just couldn’t let alone. Or leave them there. They probably deserved it.
Undead, and Lizards, and Dwarves, oh my!
It’s fun to roleplay humans, as a human you’re doing it right now. Me too, as it happens. Regardless, Rivellon is a rich and rife world, with a lot of races to play in D:OS 2. Now, you can create a Lizard, Elf, Human, Dwarf, and an Undead variant of each. We’ve 6 Origin characters to choose from, each with their own stories and dialogue options. These new races (DOS EE only allowed you to play as a human) each have their own racial traits. For example, the Undead can pick locks with their bony fingers. Elves can eat the flesh of fallen enemies and absorb their memories and learn new skills, etc. D:OS 2 takes place in a world that reacts to who you are, and what you do. Again, just like real life! But I don’t recommend eating rotting human flesh out in London or whatever.
You can still talk to animals, but let’s have a chat with a ghost
D:OS EE introduced trans-species conversational narratives into the world of gaming, if you had the Pet-Pal ability. Of course, this remains in the sequel. This time, you can also talk to ghosts! Without any spoilers, there’s a moment in the game where you might accidentally(?) create a lot of them. If you do, have a chat and find out how they feel about that. It’s the least you can do. As an elf, if ethereal beings aren’t your thing, you’re more than welcome to gain insights from a severed head. Two heads are better than one, afterall.
Dynamic music that changes with you
The music in D:OS 2 is defined by you. The soundtrack to your journey adapts based on a few things: the instrument you pick in character creation, and the actions you take throughout the game. From four instruments, the music in combat will adapt heroically or depressingly depending on the actions you take. Heroic fight? The party will know. That cello will sound more predominant, and your friends will know it was you who electrocuted that one guy into the netherrealm. Losing a fight? You’ll hear it before the final blow lands. The instruments dynamically weave in and out of the music seamlessly. Now, in the Definitive Edition the Lady Vengeance ship will play your personal tune.
A new game engine enhances everything from visuals to mechanics
D:OS 2 jumped to an entirely new engine, including the new patented (probably, maybe) A.I 2.0. Enemies in D:OS 2 know all the tricks. They can be as creative as you are. The Definitive Edition improves even further on this, with a new version of the physics engine bringing even more chaos to the game. Now, enjoy things like height advantages in combat, as well as PBR (Physically-Based Rendering) bringing the Divinity series into the next-gen for best-in-class visuals on the Xbox One, with HDR and 4K.
These are just 5 of the major changes between Divinity: Original Sin Enhanced Edition, and the new Divinity: Original Sin 2 – Definitive Edition. Not only are there dozens of other major changes between the two, there are thousands of changes between the original release of D:OS 2 and its new Definitive Edition version you’ll be getting your hands on. At Larian, we’ve worked hard to improve the game based on player feedback despite its universal critical acclaim, in hopes that you thoroughly enjoy this, the very literally named Definitive Edition of Divinity: Original Sin 2.