Pathfinder: Kingmaker Reviews
There is no denying it, this is a tough nut to crack. But with effort comes reward! For all its intricacies and quirks, you’ll find yourself with a fantastically challenging experience. It does enough to compare it fondly to it its peer group, but its list of bugs and high difficulty keeps it from excelling. Do I recommend it? I do! If you wish to try this massive RPG for yourself, then buy it here! Choose your path, influence your people, and explore the world. 100+ hours of gameplay await you in this D&D inspired title.
Pathfinder: Kingmaker is a faithful representation of a pen and paper RPG experience, with all the variables and systems that the original already had, as well as a complete and detailed character creation. Although this sounds like a good thing, this game is not recommended for any type of player, who can end up having an extremely exhausting experience due to its high difficulty, complex concepts, extensive history and endless loading screens.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
Pathfinder: Kingmaker is a solid game, severely hampered by technical and control limitations on consoles. The best way to play remains the PC version, as it suffers from none of the PS4’s control problems and a lot less of the technical ones. Pathfinder: Kingmaker is a game positively overflowing with content, and will keep you entertained for countless hours if you wish it. It’s not a game that necessarily does anything new to reinvent the genre, but it shows great love for the original source material which should indebt it to fans of the tabletop RPG.
Pathfinder Kingmaker isn’t for everyone, and that shows. The complex and deep RPG mechanics mimic those of pen and paper RPGs of old, and the lack of meaningful direction the game gives new players can be off-putting. But if you are familiar with the genre or are willing to put in the time to truly learn this game, it can be an exciting and rewarding experience. Just bear in mind that it’s hard to recommend to console players in its current state.
It's a major time commitment, sure, but Pathfinder: Kingmaker has the kind of narrative arc and development that perfectly captures the essence of playing a tabletop RPG, only in digital form.
There was a lot of potential in Kingmaker, but also a lot of wasted potential. The developers might still be able to salvage this potential if they listen to criticism and are willing to overhaul the game in every possible way.
Pathfinder Kingmaker on PC is incredibly fun and rightfully nominated in our Global Game Awards 2018 for Best RPG. Today Owlcat have already made Pathfinder Kingmaker into a beautiful looking, rich CRPG, that delivers a great place to adventure, an interesting land to rule and the tools to carve out a realm that you can call home.
Pathfinder: Kingmaker sets up an epic story, expansive world, difficult combat, and lively characters, but all these elements eventually become tiresome. Its unforgiving difficulty and strict adherence to Pathfinder tabletop rules will likely turn away more players than it attracts, and while its kingdom management sim sets it apart from similar RPGs, no part of the game ever feels wholly original. Despite boldly putting players in the role of a king or queen, it never engages enough with the consequences of your decisions, or whether you have the right to make them at all.
Although inspired in its kingdom management system, Pathfinder: Kingmaker ultimately fails to innovate in any of its presented gameplay functions. Lacking in writing,combat, and even fun, a game that had potential to change things up just becomes a disappointment.
Classic, intense, fun but also a little "oldie", that the way Pathfinder: Kingmaker works. A great option for RPG fans that focuses on the fans of the old style.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
Pathfinder: Kingmaker is exactly what the roleplaying genre needed; an excellent evolution to one of the most respected and beloved genres in gaming. Though there are plenty of little technical oddities, the level of detail put into every single aspect of Kingmaker is something many other studios should take note of; if you are looking to create a rich world that is utterly encompassing, then look to OwlCat's Pathfinder: Kingmaker. With a world full of consequence, for good or worse, with tactical combat, extremely deep character customization and growth, and some of the best micro-stories I have seen since The Witcher 3: The Wild Hunt, Pathfinder: Kingmaker is here to stay. Watch out Larian Studios, the Divinity franchise is no longer alone in its excellence. In fact with a little optimization, Pathfinder: Kingmaker can, and will, give you a run for its money …
Pathfinder Kingmaker blends the experiences of a traditional tabletop RPG and an isometric dungeon crawler into a solid experience clearly inspired by some of the greats of the genre. With a little more polish on certain gameplay aspects this could be perfect, but it's still a deep and rewarding RPG with enough customizability for you to play it how you want.
PC gamers looking for the old time cRPG feeling can't go wrong with Pathfinder: Kingmaker. The presentation is beautiful, the writing is excellent, and the world offers just enough life to engage the player's imagination to fill in the gaps. Still, at the time of this writing, balancing issues and bugs keep the game from being a definite recommend – at least for the time being.
The sword of authenticity cuts both ways for Pathfinder: Kingmaker.
Pathfinder: Kingmaker is a huge game. The depths of its mechanics seem to have no limit while the time spent playing it is equally eternal. With complex rules and stripped back tutorials, though, it is not an easy game to jump into to say the least.
I've only really scratched the surface of things which are going on in this game and trust me I haven't covered everything by far. This game has a ton to offer to both new CRPG players and players who have been around the genre for a while.
A lack of balanced difficulty and explanation of core concepts set alongside too many time consuming, anachronistic design choices distract from Pathfinder: Kingmaker's nuanced story telling, moral dilemmas and enjoyable decision making.
Pathfinder: Kingmaker is a solid, but flawed, pen-and-paper RPG in video game form. If you are a fan of isometric RPGs or Pathfinder, you will find a lot to like here.
Pathfinder: Kingmaker is a product with some issues, some flaws, some grit. But the developers use it to channel their love for classic RPGs. This game is pure nostalgia trip, and a very graceful one at that. The devs clearly adore this genre and so may you, if you give Pathfinder a chance.
Review in Polish | Read full review
Pathfinder: Kingmaker is an excellent game that successfully marries the best aspects of pen and paper RPGs with great exploration and a surprisingly good kingdom management game.