Welcome to our CHEATfactor Game Review of Pillars of Eternity. We review the game and then factor in how the available cheats affect the overall game experience. For better or worse, our reviews will help you decide whether or not to use cheats when playing the game.

Nearly every time I thought that Pillars of Eternity was taking me down the traditional RPG path, it quickly diverted course, sometimes wildly. Characters I thought were going to be major contributors to the over reaching plot were quickly killed off and quests were often much deeper than they seemed to be. It's an impressive feat to be sure, especially for a game who's main campaign alone neared the sixty hour mark and when I finally reached the end of my time with the game, I wanted to see what different decisions would have meant throughout the game. Obsidian has kickstarted an RPG that pays homage to the past of the genre (almost too much at times) but deserves to be played for it's dedication to it's craft and for what may come after it.

I was impressed at how carefully Obsidian treaded in trying to avoid falling into the same traps that most other western RPGs fall into. Though they weren't entirely successful (more on that later), the plot of Pillars of Eternity is a undoubtedly a refreshing change of pace. You're cast as a Watcher, someone who can read the souls, whether they be living or dead. It's an ability that makes character interactions much more interesting since you're more or less able to read their minds. It's even more interesting when you're trying to solve a murder and you're able to question the deceased themselves. Pillars uses this mechanic rather inventively throughout the experience and though some of the missions are mere retreads of what came before it, I rarely lost interest in what the game was trying to do.

The game's strength is clearly in it's story telling which is smart and incredibly well written. That's a good thing here since the vast majority of the story is presented in long, and intimidating blocks of text. It's a bit disappointing after playing through the cut scenes of fabulous RPGs like Dragon Age Inquisition but what's here is so well crafted that the game's biggest moments never really lose their emotional impact. Obsidian is not afraid to take risks with it's characters, locations or stories and it's intent on rewarding those who put the time into the letting it truly unfold. It also helps that the majority of the characters in the game are voiced remarkably well and short of a few smaller characters, there's really not a bad performance to be had.

This is a game that is very smart at building up what it has into a complete package. Obsidian takes the well written story and cool concept and puts it to use to create some truly interesting gameplay moments. Like most modern story driven RPGSs, Pillars opens up more and more as you meet new characters and converse with them. The game rarely takes the easy route by giving you clearly good and clearly bad choices depending on how you want your character to be and before long you'll be second guessing every choice and every interaction as Obsidian also put in some trap choices so you'll always be weary of what you're doing.

Pillars isn't all about talking though, far from it in fact - it boasts an impressively deep and challenging combat system. If you've played classics like Baldur's Gate, you'll be mostly at home here as the game borrows heavily from the esteemed franchise. If not, it's the type of quick and challenging real time combat that punishes you for looking away for even a second. I tried at first to spam moves and grind past lesser enemies (I know, I know) but was quickly reminded that that won't be accepted here. Much like the rest of the game, Pillars of Eternity rewards you heavily for taking the time to learn it's systems, and punishes you swiftly for failing to do so. Be warned though, the AI seems to have random moments where it forgets where it is and you'll have to prod your teammates into battle from time to time.

There's been an influx of RPGs lately that pay homage to Baldur's Gate but if Pillars of Eternity was a love note to the franchise, it'd be an awkwardly desperate one dunked in perfume and signed in lipstick (or is that blood?). Obsidian makes no bones about the fact that it's inspired by the long loved franchise and that's fine, it's just...too much at times. To be blunt, Pillars looks incredibly dated at times and that's probably on purpose as the game tries so hard to recreate the feeling of classic RPGs, but you have to wonder if it's doing so at the expense of it's own success. I'm well aware that most people will be coming to the game looking for the experience, but some may be turned off by the remarkably dated visuals.

Old school RPG fans are going to love Pillars of Eternity. It's more than a love letter to genre standouts like Buldar's Gate and challenges players with a smart and well written script that defies genre convention. Be warned though, newcomers to the genre may find Obsidian's game to be far too different than anything else they've played recently. They're encouraged to give the game time though as this could be the start of the next great RPG series.