I played a few demos (no real standouts), but I did start Divinity Original Sin 2 EE.
As someone who just got off the first with 100+ hours, I can already say that first 5 hours in that it the sequel is already significantly more intriguing and has better characters. The two main characters of the first being relatively blank slates is just a step above silent protagonist, whereas playing as an "origin story" character gives you, yah know, a role to play.
The combat is also more interesting, so far. Getting used to the armor system versus the dice rolls percentage-based status ailment system is a bit tricky because of learned habits.
The granularity of the new character system is more robust and feels much more like a translated tabletop to video game experience versus the more clunky system of the first. Having awareness of how the game mechanics work from the past game (i.e., crafting, spell interaction, talents, general game flow) still applies, but everything is just faster.
You could fee the internal rhythm of the games workings in DOS1EE, something like turns took 5 seconds or so? Simply things like casting heals on your party after combat took tedious amounts of time, and DOS2EE cuts it in half or more. Perhaps it's still tedious for newcomers, but to me, it's a breath of fresh air.
Everything feels just better, more engrossing, and engaging. I am following character build guides, because I treat these games like digital pen and paper RPGs with all the resource books in front of me. Blind playing just frustrates me, but I don't really look up game guides, just how to build effective characters to navigate the game, if that makes sense.
So far, enjoying it. I can see how some folks say its the pinnacle of this specific sub-genre, so I have high hopes for the next 70~90 hours...
