first off, it’s great that we even get controller support
when POE was ported to the Xbox they said it couldn’t be done for pc players, at which point there was already the former version of controller support for Grim Dawn
that said, I still feel the urge to review it, not because it really lacks but for the possible betterment of playing the game in this way
Gear:
I have tested this on the steam controller, most things I am going to point out go for any controller though, so it doesn’t really matter
The review:
the controller scheme is a huge improvement on the earlier version, it is clear that it is a work in progress though, and although there are some things done really well, I feel it has some way to go, to be up to par with mouse and keyboard and/or ready for the Xbox port
- I LOVE how you added the achievements to the character menu, really easy to access them that way and it gives a very clear view on what there is left to achieve
I normally don’t bother much with achievements, as the game already has a lot to accomplish, but it really draws my attention to it
I would almost say it makes me want to achieve them all!
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it seems that the loyalist pack was omitted, instead of ‘use item’, it says ‘N/A’ when I want to summon my will ‘o’ wisp, I can use it though, so that is only text
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on the steam controller the control for switching the skillset is located at the bottom of the mousepad, which is very close to the ABXY buttons.
while playing I have to be very careful not to accidently switch.
on other controllers that function would be on the right stick, I have a Logitech F710, the right stick on that controller is also close to ABXY, which means that there is also a (smaller) chance to accidently bump the skillset.
the camera-movement is also on the mousepad/right stick, someone already suggested a function to lock it, I agree with that
I also have to be honest do, I don’t see a way how that can be fixed, there aren’t really any buttons left on a regular controller… -
[i]targeting with the red triangles is a lot less precise compared with the mouse, for example, if I normally use Blitz and want to reach the end of a pack of monsters, I just click the monster I wish to hit.
obviously it is not that easy on a controller as you have no way of selecting individual monsters.
I realize this is probably not fixable, most likely it is something which comes with playing an ARPG with a controller
on prior versions of the steam controller scheme, secrets were no longer secrets as the walls that can be broken immediately showed a red outline.
this has been reduced, but it is not gone.
it really spoils the fun a bit that every secret area is visible, because, what’s the point of them then right? -
please make the loot bubbles targetable, they can be hard to hit with the default attack[/i]
when switching from controller to mouse, the red triangles above monsters often persist, I suppose this is a bug.
- when I play with mouse and keyboard, I tend to have a finger on my map button, making it possible to quickly view the map and then move on.
on the controller the map uses two buttons, arrow down to open it and then B to close it.
this makes the map a bit of a pain during gameplay.
suggestion: I once used to run a mod on Torchlight II that gave me the option of pressing my map button to make the map appear and releasing it to make it go away.
could this be implemented in some way, or doesn’t the engine or UI allow that?
I think this would be a QOL feature for mouse and keyboard players as well
- the ability to press A to access an NPC has a too large range, often making it difficult to cast aura’s, potions and pet spells while in town
this also applies to doorways and ladders when just entering a dungeon or zone, I often end up having to enter a zone again
- there is still quite a lot in the game that has to be done with the mouse function on controllers, on steam controllers it isn’t really that big an issue but I can imagine that it’s a pain when using stick controllers
I suppose that for the game to be ready for an xbox port everything has to be accessible with the left stick, the startup menu, the map, the devotion system, the inventory etc.
that’s it really, great job Crate!
on some characters I prefer the controller over mouse and keyboard
I can’t wait to see what you have yet in store for us