Pillars of Eternity - Too Many Words

luj1 said:
You're absolutely clueless d'Art. By the way it must be pathetic for a grown man that his "job" is reduced to browsing internet forums. Later, champ.
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It is love, baby don't hurt me - don't hurt me…. no more! ;)
 
Actually Stein, I don't interpret the sentence the same way you do. I read that the person is constantly glancing at the sky because it is starless, hoping to see a familiar star pop out among the clouds. Nothing weird with that. If it actually was a clear night, he would only have to throw a glance occasionally right?

I do think the second paragraph is too verbose though, but that's more a matter of style. As is the wagons groping like you mentioned, wagons can't actually grope. But it works for me in this context.
 
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This whole thing Vogel talks about is the same reason why Tolkien lost the Nobel prize.
 
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luj1 said:
This whole thing Vogel talks about is the same reason why Tolkien lost the Nobel prize.
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I don't know about the noble prize, but I've never been a huge Tolkien fan. I recognise him as extremely important for the genre of Fantasy which I highly enjoy, but I hold later fantasy authors in much higher regard when it comes to telling an interesting story.

I don't think him using too many words has anything to do with it though.
 
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tomasp3n said:
Actually Stein, I don't interpret the sentence the same way you do. I read that the person is constantly glancing at the sky because it is starless, hoping to see a familiar star pop out among the clouds. Nothing weird with that. If it actually was a clear night, he would only have to throw a glace occasionally right?

I do think the second paragraph is too verbose though, but that's more a matter of style. As is the wagons groping like you mentioned, wagons can't actually grope. But it works for me in this context.
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That could very well be the intended meaning, I'll admit. But then it would make more sense to simply say that it was a cloudy night, and it would immediately be clear why he would keep glancing.

But I would then argue that the fact that what ought to be such a simple descriptive passage can be interpreted in several ways only illustrates the lack of clarity in the writing.
 
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NewDArt said:
It seems every few months we have to educate the young people who still think you can objectively establish the quality of entertainment ;)

I say young because I'm such a kind guy - as I don't want to believe any mature individual who play a ton of games can really be that ignorant.
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I think I'll let (my last contribution to) the thread and my own thoughts rest on your quote. Said perfectly. ;)
 
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Steinawarjar said:
But I would then argue that the fact that what ought to be such a simple descriptive passage can be interpreted in several ways only illustrates the lack of clarity in the writing.
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This I can agree with. Although to me a starless night is a cloudy night. It's not like anything else can be the reason for it being starless, apart from the sun shining...
 
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tomasp3n said:
I don't think him using too many words has anything to do with it though.
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Especially when you take into consideration that the winner had something like 200 pages, as opposed to 1.200 pages and 450.000 words in LotR.
 
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luj1 said:
Especially when you take into consideration that the winner had something like 200 pages, as opposed to 1.200 pages and 450.000 words in LotR.
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I was referring to me not being fond of his books, I claim no knowledge in the area of Nobel Prizes. I'll leave that to the "intellectual elite" of my country.
 
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Steinawarjar said:
But then it would make more sense to simply say that it was a cloudy night, and it would immediately be clear why he would keep glancing.
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But it is already clear: he keeps glancing because he is in a dangerous situation.
But I would then argue that the fact that what ought to be such a simple descriptive passage can be interpreted in several ways only illustrates the lack of clarity in the writing.
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The text describes a dangerous situation. It is not a technical writing, the text can live with its ambiguities.
The caravan driver could be a seasoned driver who keeps looking at a starless sky as a way to reassure himself. The caravan driver could be a mental, looking at a starless sky from an irrational impulse etc
The caravan trek is still in danger.
 
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This reminded me of Icewind Dale II

115601-icewind-dale-ii-windows-screenshot-a-prologue-screen-introduces.jpg


Much more clear, concise with better use of metaphors and did a far better job of involving the player ( better VA narration and involving existing characters).

Or Baldur's Gate I:

"It is an imposing fortress, kept in strict isolation from the intrigues that occasionally plague the rest of the Forgotten Realms.
It is secluded, highly regimented, and it is home."
 
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I actually find that text in ID2 to be pretty close to the one in PoE. The Baldurs Gate one is better yes, but that might be my nostalgia colouring it. But to me that one gave a sense out place which the others don't.
 
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BoboTheMighty said:
This reminded me of Icewind Dale II
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Even in the best writings, the quality is uneven. Authors prefer to reserve the best quality for the moments they deem the most important.
That is called having priorities right.
 
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