Pillars of Eternity II - Forgotten Sanctum DLC Review @ RPG Site

Pillars of Eternity II: Deadfire - The Forgotten Sanctum Review

I didn't have very high hopes going into Pillars of Eternity II: Deadfire's last DLC offering in The Forgotten Sanctum. The first two pieces of Deadfire's post-launch content both fell pretty flat for me: Beast of Winter felt merely like a stand-alone vehicle to reference some of Eternity's more esoteric lore while Seeker, Slayer, Survivor felt entirely inconsequential and frankly -- boring. However, not only did the completionist in me still want to see this through to its conclusion, the CRPG fan in me isn't sure if or when we'll ever see another game like this from Obsidian, which sort of gives this entry a bit more weight.

With the revealing of The Outer Worlds just a week before Sanctum's release alongside the studio's recent acquisition by Microsoft beyond that, suddenly this little download finds itself in a bit of a different light -- it's a little more than just Deadfire's last DLC, but potentially Obsidian's last contribution to the 'CRPG Renaissance' of the last handful of years.

Luckily, it seems like Deadfire is going to go out on a relatively high note.

[...]

All in all, The Forgotten Sanctum is a strong way for Deadfire, and possibility Pillars of Eternity in general, to end-- at least for the moment. It lacks a certain level of gravitas that perhaps would usually be expected out of a proper conclusion, but its strengths lie in the same places that Deadfires' always have - motivated character writing, a solid sense of cohesion between gameplay mechanics and narrative, and the events within hold proper sense of significance as part of the world put forth. Fans of Deadfire who have been let down by lackluster additions so far should definitely not let that steer them away from this final entry.

Score: 8/10

Click to expand...

Whether you purchased The Forgotten Sanctum on its own for $10 or as part of the Season Pass it is worth every dollar. The new gear, potions, and spells you acquire can be carried over into the main campaign. The dungeon is well crafted, the story is engaging and the cast of characters are memorable. The archmage Tayn made me laugh a number of times and it was nice to see the game show a little love for Fassina. Oh and don’t forget to bring your pet Nemnok along. He never ceases to entertain. It was a joy to have one last adventure with my party. The DLC offers up some tough challenges and memorable moments. I did not encounter any game breaking bugs or broken quests. The battle with the final boss and the resolution of the Forgotten Sanctum story did feel a bit anticlimactic though. The DLC felt like it could have been a large, proper expansion or even its own game instead of just a short 10 hour dungeon. That said I had a lot of fun and I’m glad the last hurrah for isometric RPGs from Obsidian turned out to be so great.

Click to expand...

Amongst Deadfire's three DLCs, The Forgotten Sanctum is probably the best, as it understands the strengths of the core game much better, with a greater balance between battles, storytelling, and role-playing.

Click to expand...

I love the story-based DLC’s like this because they really allow you to get into the meat of whatever subject Obsidian throws at you. The Forgotten Sanctum is another example of why I love this franchise so much. There is a living, breathing world, full of mysteries and unseen secrets that Obsidian slowly unveils for the players.

If you like the Pillars of Eternity II: Deadfire experience so far, then this is more of what you’ll love. None of the DLC they have released is as intensive as the White March DLC Expansions from the first game, but there is a lot to love here. I don’t know if we will ever see more Pillars of Eternity content after the Microsoft acquisition of Obsidian, but this is a great sendoff.

Click to expand...

All in all, the final DLC beings Pillars of Eternity II to a rather underwhelming end. It is different from the rest of the game. Deadfire had lots of open environments and somewhat lacked in dungeons. The Forgotten Sanctum seems to make up for it, but the execution is flawed. Unlike The Beast of Winter DLC, it has a fairly limited exploration potential and doesn't add anything significant to the lore and story. Regardless, the staples of the game like challenging boss fights, plenty of equipment and a new subclass make it a worthwhile experience.

Click to expand...