Divine Divinity
Encyclopedia
Divine Divinity is a single-player fantasy computer role-playing game created by Larian Studios
, released in 2002
. It has a spin-off, Beyond Divinity
, and a sequel, Divinity II: Ego Draconis. The game was re-released in 2004 along with Beyond Divinity as a part of Beyond Divinity: Deluxe Edition.
Divine Divinity takes the player on a fantastic quest in a land torn apart by corruption and dark magic. Throughout their journeys players will get the chance to develop their character as one of six character types, and meet a variety of people and fantastical beings. By combining the best features of the RPG genre, and introducing many new features, Divine Divinity aims to appeal to both hardcore and new RPG players.
Two thousand years later, signs such as civil unrest, war, hatred and greed indicate that the dark side has become strong again and that they're preparing a new attack on Rivellon.
The prophecies of the wise men had mentioned a divine saviour of the Seven Races. This person shall be found and blessed in a secret ceremony before he or she falls into the enemy's hands, but it all happens in the Land of Divinity.
s on tombstones. There are more than 150 non-player characters, many with detailed background stories and depth, and a large number of varied villains.
For the player's choice of character, there are three character class
es and two genders, totaling six possible starters. The three classes are Survivor (a rogue-like character), Warrior and Wizard. They have slightly different conversions of statistics. For example a warrior gains 6 health points per constitution point, whilst a survivor gains only five points. Each character class has a unique movement form, such as the sneak ability for the Survivor, switch places ability for a Wizard, and the Warrior's special skill is an attack that damages enemies of all angles within the attacking range.. However, any class can use any of the other two skill paths, which each have 36 separate skills. The six characters have distinct appearances that can be modified by placing equipment on them, such as armour or helmets.
A random equipment generator allows a wide variety of items, similar to the item system of Diablo II
. Items can be upgraded using objects called charms, as well as the enchant item skill, allowing further customization. There are also slightly more than 50 (relatively) fixed items, with varying powers.
, but it didn't come to be as Atari announced its departure from the PC platform. Soon after Attic Entertainment Software
joined Larian and Unless was turned into The Lady, the Mage and the Knight, a game set in the universe of The Dark Eye
. Due to financial problems between the two development studios and its publisher, Infogrames
, The Lady, the Mage and the Knight was canceled in July 1999.
Divine Divinity development started in early 1999 codenamed Project C and later Divinity: The Sword of Lies.
gave it 8.6/10, saying that "There's much more to Divine Divinity than its impressive graphics and music and its combination of hack-and-slash action and pure role-playing, and that says a lot for the game."
While IGN
gave the game 8.5, saying of it, in summary, that "Divine Divinity is a very easy game to get into and enjoy. It lacks anything memorable, like the party NPCs with minds and dialog of their own in Baldur's Gate 2, but it has atmosphere, tons of quests, and a great deal of variety to offer. Above all, it's plain fun to play, to develop your character and find ever-better weapons and armor, to face the foe around the next corner. And who knows...? With Bioware
's assets tied up in light sabers and Black Isle Studios
working on a game that has no strategic pause mode, perhaps Larian will step forward to carry the CRPG banner in the near future. We could do a lot worse."
Larian
Larian Studios is a Belgian game developer which was founded in 1996 by Swen Vincke who derived its name from his dog, Pilar. It currently focuses on developing Computer Role-Playing and educational games, apart from LEDWars which is a hardcore strategy game and a number of casino games.Larian's...
, released in 2002
2002 in games
This page lists board and card games, wargames, miniatures games, and table-top role-playing games published in 2002. For video and console games, see 2002 in video gaming.-Death:...
. It has a spin-off, Beyond Divinity
Beyond Divinity
Beyond Divinity is a computer role-playing game which followed up on Divine Divinity created by Larian Studios and published in 2004. The game was met with mixed reviews by critics....
, and a sequel, Divinity II: Ego Draconis. The game was re-released in 2004 along with Beyond Divinity as a part of Beyond Divinity: Deluxe Edition.
Gameplay
Divine Divinity is a computer role-playing game. There are 3 character classes—Warrior, Mage and Survivor (similar to the Rogue class archetype common in many RPGs), each with a special move. However spells and skills of one class are available to all other classes. The choice of gender, except for defining the starting skills for the characters, offers no significant difference in gameplay experience.Divine Divinity takes the player on a fantastic quest in a land torn apart by corruption and dark magic. Throughout their journeys players will get the chance to develop their character as one of six character types, and meet a variety of people and fantastical beings. By combining the best features of the RPG genre, and introducing many new features, Divine Divinity aims to appeal to both hardcore and new RPG players.
Synopsis
Many thousands of years ago, those who sat on Council of Seven in the magic land Rivellon sacrificed themselves in the fight against a group of treacherous magicians, who had passed over to the dark side of magic. To remember the Council of Seven, the "Divine Order" was founded to pass on the knowledge of the wise men to the next generations.Two thousand years later, signs such as civil unrest, war, hatred and greed indicate that the dark side has become strong again and that they're preparing a new attack on Rivellon.
The prophecies of the wise men had mentioned a divine saviour of the Seven Races. This person shall be found and blessed in a secret ceremony before he or she falls into the enemy's hands, but it all happens in the Land of Divinity.
Key Features
There are four huge maps totalling over 20,000 screens, with a wide range of environments such as elven forests, a demon wasteland, farmlands, towns, fortifications and extensive sewer systems. The world is extensive, and includes numerous details such as epitaphEpitaph
An epitaph is a short text honoring a deceased person, strictly speaking that is inscribed on their tombstone or plaque, but also used figuratively. Some are specified by the dead person beforehand, others chosen by those responsible for the burial...
s on tombstones. There are more than 150 non-player characters, many with detailed background stories and depth, and a large number of varied villains.
Character class
In role-playing games, a common method of arbitrating the capabilities of different game characters is to assign each one to a character class. A character class aggregates several abilities and aptitudes, and may also sometimes detail aspects of background and social standing or impose behaviour...
es and two genders, totaling six possible starters. The three classes are Survivor (a rogue-like character), Warrior and Wizard. They have slightly different conversions of statistics. For example a warrior gains 6 health points per constitution point, whilst a survivor gains only five points. Each character class has a unique movement form, such as the sneak ability for the Survivor, switch places ability for a Wizard, and the Warrior's special skill is an attack that damages enemies of all angles within the attacking range.. However, any class can use any of the other two skill paths, which each have 36 separate skills. The six characters have distinct appearances that can be modified by placing equipment on them, such as armour or helmets.
A random equipment generator allows a wide variety of items, similar to the item system of Diablo II
Diablo II
Diablo II is a dark fantasy/horror-themed hack and slash, with elements of the role playing game and dungeon crawl genres. It was released for Windows and Mac OS in 2000 by Blizzard Entertainment, and was developed by Blizzard North. It is a direct sequel to the 1996 hit PC game, Diablo.Diablo II...
. Items can be upgraded using objects called charms, as well as the enchant item skill, allowing further customization. There are also slightly more than 50 (relatively) fixed items, with varying powers.
Soundtrack
A very extensive and adaptive soundtrack was written by Kirill Pokrovsky for the game. RPG Vault gave Divine Divinity the award for Outstanding Achievement in Music. They said, "It very proficiently supports the changing moods and locations in the game, never becoming either overwhelming or repetitive."Development
An early version of the isometric game engine was used by Larian Studios for its very first project, Unless: The Treachery of Death, in 1996. Larian Studios was about to sign a publishing deal with AtariAtari
Atari is a corporate and brand name owned by several entities since its inception in 1972. It is currently owned by Atari Interactive, a wholly owned subsidiary of the French publisher Atari, SA . The original Atari, Inc. was founded in 1972 by Nolan Bushnell and Ted Dabney. It was a pioneer in...
, but it didn't come to be as Atari announced its departure from the PC platform. Soon after Attic Entertainment Software
Attic Entertainment Software
The Attic Entertainment Software GmbH was a German computer game developer and publisher that was founded September 1990 by Hans-Jürgen Brändle, Jochen Hamma and Guido Henkel in Albstadt, Baden-Württemberg...
joined Larian and Unless was turned into The Lady, the Mage and the Knight, a game set in the universe of The Dark Eye
The Dark Eye
The Dark Eye , is a German role-playing game created by Ulrich Kiesow and launched by Schmidt Spiel & Freizeit GmbH and Droemer Knaur Verlag in 1984. The name literally means "the black eye"...
. Due to financial problems between the two development studios and its publisher, Infogrames
Infogrames
Infogrames Entertainment SA was an international French holding company headquartered in Paris, France. It was the owner of Atari, Inc., headquartered in New York City, U.S. and Atari Europe. It was founded in 1983 by Bruno Bonnell and Christophe Sapet using the proceeds from an introductory...
, The Lady, the Mage and the Knight was canceled in July 1999.
Divine Divinity development started in early 1999 codenamed Project C and later Divinity: The Sword of Lies.
Reception
The game received generally positive reviews, with most critics praising its storyline and depth and criticising its name. GamespotGameSpot
GameSpot is a video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information. The site was launched in May 1, 1996 by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. It was purchased by ZDNet, a brand which was later purchased by CNET Networks. CBS Interactive, which...
gave it 8.6/10, saying that "There's much more to Divine Divinity than its impressive graphics and music and its combination of hack-and-slash action and pure role-playing, and that says a lot for the game."
While IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
gave the game 8.5, saying of it, in summary, that "Divine Divinity is a very easy game to get into and enjoy. It lacks anything memorable, like the party NPCs with minds and dialog of their own in Baldur's Gate 2, but it has atmosphere, tons of quests, and a great deal of variety to offer. Above all, it's plain fun to play, to develop your character and find ever-better weapons and armor, to face the foe around the next corner. And who knows...? With Bioware
BioWare
BioWare is a Canadian video game developer founded in February 1995 by newly graduated medical doctors Ray Muzyka, Greg Zeschuk, and Augustine Yip. BioWare is currently owned by American company Electronic Arts...
's assets tied up in light sabers and Black Isle Studios
Black Isle Studios
Black Isle Studios was a division of the computer and video game developer and publisher Interplay Entertainment. Black Isle Studios was a division that developed computer role-playing games, and also published several games from other developers. It was based in Orange County, California, USA. The...
working on a game that has no strategic pause mode, perhaps Larian will step forward to carry the CRPG banner in the near future. We could do a lot worse."
External links
- Official web page, Last update: 23 December 2002.
- Soundtrack composer Kirill Pokrovsky's website.
- Music themes
- Download the demo
- Divine Divinity Wiki (unofficial)