A soaring achievement in the genre, very minor technical issues aren't enough to detract from the fact that Pillars of Eternity 2 Deadfire: Ultimate Edition is the first must-have game of 2020 and the finest RPG in an age. Adventures don't come much more essential than this.

The branching storylines and miles-deep character and world customization are soul food for players yearning for experiences similar to 90’s cRPGs like Baldur’s Gate or Icewind Dale. Obsidian Entertainment is a master of this craft, knowing that the best way to draw in players are vivid worlds unlike any other and unforgettable stories. Console players shouldn’t be intimidated by a game with its roots in anything but a controller. Menus, combat, and controls are surprisingly easy to navigate and the game runs incredibly well. Having all the updated content only further adds to the value of an already valuable package. If you’re willing to wade in these salty waters, Pillars of Eternity II: Deadfire Ultimate Edition is worth its weight in gold.

Pillars of Eternity II arrives on consoles in it’s the best edition with all additional content, completely bringing all of it’s best aspects to console gaming. With its rich non-linear narrative, astonishing world and lore and interesting characters and both real-time and turn-based gameplay, it still is a great game, even with its bad optimisation and confusing control scheme for controllers.

It's the amazing RPG of 2018 with all the systems and mechanics well adapted to console controls, with a superb writing and translation. But, all that great things get muddier because of the long and habitual loading times: 60-90 seconds for every single time we cross a door, change area... Until a patch fixes it, it's a pain in the ass.

It's advised that people play this gem of a game on PC in order to experience the best version of Pillars of Eternity II: Deadfire, but the drawbacks of the console version can be overlooked by people who are really patient or don't mind messing around on their phone every couple of minutes when going back to a town to restock on times.

The story's definitely worth experiencing, as is the unique artistic vision conveyed within the game. However, glitches, framedrops and an overabundance of loading screens unfortunately kill the joy a bit.

It is mired by a litany of hurdles, that perhaps a more patient player can deal with, but many will really wrestle with this - for them it is advised to seek out PoEII on a platform that it's design is more inherent. At very least, wait until a patch can fix some glitches, and the egregious loading times, in particular. Someone that can get beyond those inconveniences will discover there is a deep novel-esque adventure to be had. This adventure is full of loot, bounties, ship battles, and engaging fetch quests; all of the usual RPG fare that would keep aficionados happy. The island setting is memorable and full of lyrical, witty writing to be discovered which is great. When it works, it can be immersive and no doubt extensively replayable. It's just a shame that it didn't quite nail the port execution.