Grim Dawn 2023/2024 (1.2 and Expansion)

[rittchard]

One of the best ARPGs of all time recently released a huge (free) update. A lot of great QoL features and re-balancing, etc. An already great game made even better. So nice to see a fairly old game like this still so well (and meaningfully) supported.

https://store.steampowered.com/news/app ... ?l=english

…and coming next year, another expansion! Fangs of Asterkarn!!!

https://store.steampowered.com/news/app ... ?l=english

[Carpet_pissr]

Oooh, thanks. I put dozens of hours in this but never finished for whatever reason.

Excellent game, this will be a good impetus to get me to finish maybe.

[Baroquen]

Same here. I was enjoying it, but I think it got edged out by some other games. It would be interesting to give this one another spin with this update.

[YellowKing]

Thanks for the heads up on this. I finished the base game way back, but never beat the expansion. It's one of those games that I circle back around to every couple of years or so. I did try out the first few minutes with the patch and it's evident that they dropped the loot rate WAY down (which is a good thing - I think half the game was inventory management).

Looking forward to giving it another go with the patch.

[GreenGoo]

Great game that I never finished, despite having 47 different alts and having finished Diablo II hundreds of times (or run end game anyway).

It really was a great game with extremely well done character build/design.

[YellowKing]

Just an update that I've been cracked out on Grim Dawn over Thanksgiving break. The three big quality of life improvements I immediately noticed were:

1. Reduced item drop - as I noted in my previous post, the item drop rate has been greatly reduced but it's a welcome change. The frequency of my "loot runs" back to the vendor dropped considerably. There's still some inventory management to be had if you're a pack rat like me, but it no longer feels like such a timesink.

2. They got rid of potions! All potions are bound to the hotbar on a cooldown, so you don't have to juggle that anymore. HUGE improvement.

3. All buffs now just auto-apply. Another huge improvement. Unlock it and forget it, buffs function just like passives. Now you can just focus on your offensive skills the way the good Lord intended.

I wasn't hardcore enough of a player to understand the nuances of the gameplay rebalancing they did, but I can say my journey from 1 - 50 on this current playthrough has been silky smooth in terms of natural progression through areas. Have never had a need to grind, nor have I had to do much if any backtracking through areas too low for me. Everything has fit perfectly in the 2 levels below to 2 levels higher range for my character.

As a fan of the game even in its previous state, I'm extremely happy with the updates. It's a great time to jump back in.

[Carpet_pissr]

Well, shit, I guess I’ll just start over then if it’s changed that much.

I hate potion management in any game like this, so anyone offering a new take on that slog, I’m all for it.

[GreenGoo]

re-installed this week and I barely recognized the game, even though my original alts were still there (cloud saves, presumably).

With the addition of 3 new classes in the 2 expansions, I have now added those expansions to my wish list. Looking at their pricing history, I'm not sure they will get cheap enough for me to buy, but I'm watching them now at least.

Truly amazing the class combinations possible with this game.

[Hyena]

One of my favorite builds is the Warden, I think it's called. Basically a thorns build that specializes in acid (poison?) retaliation. Perdition set and retaliation damage gear and everything basically kills itself. Fun to watch them all melt, but not a very.. "active" build to play.

[GreenGoo]

The skill trees are so diverse that you can make a Warden (or any other combination) in several different ways. I have a Warden right now that is nothing like you describe. The game does a really good job of giving you options. Too many, maybe. Decision paralysis.

The DLC didn't go on sale with the spring sale.

[El Guapo]

Does the update make the dawn any less grim?

[Hyena]

Does the update make the dawn any less grim?

None at all. In fact, it may even be GRIMMER...

[GreenGoo]

Darker too. Grimmer and Darker. Grimmer Darker.

[GreenGoo]

I've been watching for a sale of the 2 main DLCs (with new classes) since before the spring sale on Steam. Nothing. Literally no where has had either on sale for like 6 weeks at least.

Yes they were on sale during xmas sale, but I wasn't looking for them then. I'm actually kind of amazed. I'm not even looking for a deep discount, just...anything.

It's kind of funny. I want more classes so I can create more alts!

[GreenGoo]

Finally. First sale anywhere since Steam xmas sale ended. Steam has the DLC I want for 25% for 2 and 30% for one I don't care about. Buying everything bundled gives me the 30% off one for free, essentially. So I bought the bundle.

I wonder what the limits on alts is, if any.