Larian Studios’ acclaimed RPG Divinity: Original Sin is getting the board game treatment, and the project is doing the old Kickstarter dance right now.
Divinity: Original Sin – The Board Game, as it shall be known, is the work of Lynnvander Studios, a team whose portfolio predominantly features licensed titles including board game adaptation of Cowboy Bebop, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Dragon Ball Z, and more.
Lynnvander’s Divinity: Original Sin is described as a branching, narrative adventure for up to four players, “filled with tactical combat and meaningful choices”. It’s set in the world of Rivellon and, despite lacking the number at the end of its title, is specifically based on Divinity: Original Sin 2, albeit with new stories, side quests, skills, items, and monsters.
The standard version of the board game (given that this is Kickstarter, the optional extras are dizzying and endless) includes four origin story characters – Ifan Ben-Mezd, The Red Prince, Farzanah, and Vali – and the bulk of the action is focussed on the included story book. This will present various scenarios, and teams can decide how to react and where to go, with character traits and abilities affecting the choices available.
Locations are represented by cards, which might contain treasure, traps, or even turn-based combat encounters (Lynnvander is attempting to replicate the video game’s elemental interaction system), and player choices will, says the studio, ultimately lead to “one of many possible endings”. You can watch an hour and a half play-through of the game below.
The immediate good news is that Divinity: Original Sin – The Board Game has already reached its $160,000 USD goal, with 29 days of the campaign left to go. As such, if you back now, the project is guaranteed to progress, even if delivery is subject to the usual Kickstarter caveats. The minimum pledge for a copy of the game is $120 USD (about £93).
All being well, Lynnvander expects Divinity: Original Sin – The Board Game to arrive on backer’s doorsteps in October 2020.
