Pathfinder: Kingmaker – Enhanced Edition

For a CRPG lover such as myself, this game is pure gold. First of all, it is MASSIVE, as in INSANE loads of hand-crafted content. The mechanics are also very classicist, i.e. a very detailed and accurate implementation of the Pathfinder ruleset, complete with very slow level progression (by today's standards), despite the huge number of fights you're going through.
The sheer number of fights and their challenge (if you don't dumb it down in the difficulty settings) means that this is a game for people who love tinkering with complex RPG mechanics and optimizing the heck out of their party. Some fights will really challenge you to think out of the box, and you will always need to be smart about managing your resources, because at some point you will be caught ill-prepared.
But what makes this game so massive is mainly the Barony mechanics that force you to travel back and forth through your entire realm, having random encounters and exploring every corner of your realm while expanding it through diplomacy, construction and questing. This serves to pace and spread the feet-on-the-ground content over this extra layer of event-driven political/strategic RP and city building mechanics. This additional layer is very well integrated in that it keeps interacting with your party gameplay through quests and resources.
Don't believe the negative comments you may have read about the encounter design. Enemies spawning out of thin air is extremely rare, and in the few cases I've seen it happen it was always somehow motivated through the story. Some people may also have gotten confused by invisible enemies. There are MANY encounters, and of course the random encounters are technically infinite and follow a set of blueprints. So of course not every one is a masterpiece, but there is a lot of diversity and some very memorable ones.

Lets start with the bad since there isn't a lot of it.
1. The camera sucks for combat sometimes. With no ability to rotate the camera you can sometimes end up fighting outlines behind walls, this dosent matter in most situations but in dungeons and narrow maps this can be annoying.
2. The kingdom management feels tacked on and annoying. Multiple aspects including figuring out how to unlock advisor positions and figuring out how to raise kingdom stats felt unfulfilling and frustrating at times. There are aspects of kingdom management that can make you lose the game if certain situations get out of control and your advisors cant handle them. Fortunately you can turn on "invincible kingdom" in the options and it negates 95% of this but this was easily my least favorite aspect of the game.
3. Multiple quests are time gated, while this almost never was a problem for me i can see how someone who gets carried away can fail things just by not paying attention to timing.
Now for the good:
1. The story is epic, from the opening moment to the final scene there are multiple times in the game that have stuck with me. Story moment abound and pull you into the world and the lore that is being built.
2. Choices matter: Seriously, i had choices that i made in the first 20 hours of the game that played out in the final 10. Some were good and some absolutely sucked, your decisions carry weight and choices stick with you and have meaning. More games need to pay attention to a system like this.
3. Companions and side quests are really good, each companion has their own story that you can dive into and play out to learn about them but also to build their loyalty too you in the kingdom.
4. Combat feels really good, this is Pathfinder to its core as the name suggests. Having played the tabletop i can tell you that this is as faithful an adaptation of that system as you are going to get.
Overall this was one of the best CRPG's ive played in a very long time, 100% worth sinking your time into if you enjoy Pathfinder, D&D or anything fantasy.

Don't listen to all the people complaining about missing and the game being hard there are lots of difficulty option choices to choose from the lowest being nearly impossible to die on. If you are finding the game too difficult it probably stems from a lack of knowledge of the pathfinder system and talents. That being said you don't have to follow meta builds, play what you want if it's too hard it's a single player game you can turn the difficulty down nobody is there to judge you.
I ignored this game for a long time because of all the comments about time limits. They can be annoying for sure, but if you do all the main story quests as soon as they pop up you will be fine. After they are done you still have the same amount of time before the next big section starts to explore and do side quests. Would I prefer they didn't exist? Yes. do they ruin the game? No.
Some of the areas can be quite repetitive (re-using the same maps for example), and the game does feel a bit dated.
I know the game was released in a buggy state, but I have run across very few, and none of them game breaking.
All that being said:
The story is good.
Kingdom management is enjoyable.
Character building in pathfinder is great and trying new builds is always fun.
Combat is as challenging as you would like.
Huge bang for your buck, think I found it at 75% off.
I wouldn't buy it over Baldurs Gate 3 or even Pathfinder Wrath of the Righteous, but if you are a CRPG fan it's worth a play.

I have spent far, far, far too long with this game.
I adore it. I love it.
There is no twist to this statement, I genuinely just adore Pathfinder Kingmaker, it's character, the world and the plot.
Best 5 dollars I ever spent, and I wish I had played it sooner.

Out of all the WRPGs (western RPGs), I've played thus far. Pathfinder: Kingmaker(PK) is without a doubt the most complex and rich in nearly every category I long for in the genre. And to Owlcat’s credit, the Kickstarter backed CRPG nearly achieved what I was searching for. Full of working systems, deep mechanics, and extensive kingdom-building, matched by a fascinating amount of world-building and filled with memorable characters. A long story, featuring multiple endings. A real-time with pause combat system and a turn-based mode were added later on. Dense fantasy single-player title from an isometric perspective. And yet I can’t help but find the whole experience of clearing everything possible in over 130 hours a double-edged sword. Full of sharp awesome content. Yet underneath lies a blunt edge full of troubling matters. Alexander Mishulin, Creative Director at Owlcat Games eloquently sums up the matter in an interview saying “...Huge Pathfinder system ruleset was left tricky and unclear in many ways for the new players unfamiliar with the tabletop game.”

Storywise I found to be a slow-burn. But ultimately an enjoyable affair. You start in a competition for the rights to become baron/baroness of the Stolen Lands. A large swath of unclaimed land with no leader.

Plethora of classes to choose from and upgrade. More than fifteen main jobs. And several archetypes within. A barbarian, for instance, specializes in an armored hulk, mad dog, or invulnerable rager. A cleric branches off into a herald caller, ecclesitheurge, and crusader.

In my honest opinion, an enjoyable isometric gameplay emerges. Regarding the many systems at play. Battles are somewhat challenging relying on your crew's profession. For instance, if you improperly manage equipment, health items, and proper class understanding then you may be in for a life of hurt when confronting multiple foes in a large open area filled with scattered mobs. I struggled early on since I had zero Pathfinder exposure.

Have no fear of the daunting Pathfinder homework ahead! I did only the bare minimum cause I wanted to get straight into the thick of things and still managed fairly well. Here’s a secret that has never failed me when playing any CRPG. Buffing/debuffing/summoning is honestly the bread and butter. And will undoubtedly your life easier. Without any of those above, I would not be able to win against my adversaries. Helped me so much to the point I spent over 100 hours buffing in less than a minute before engagements.

If there is one notable strength here, then companions here are a breath of fresh air. Not the best, but certainly not the worst. Recruit all eleven comrades, plus two more from the Wildcards DLC. A wonderful motley crew full of contradictions and wild alignments from chaotic to lawful and those staying in the realm of neutrality. I adore my party's banter. Sharing wonderful stories and barbs anytime I rest. And their voice actors deserve only praise for going the distance. Seeing their background update during a loading screen is a small, but appreciative detail.

Kingdom building surprised me a great deal. There are plenty of systems in place here to almost make me wish for a separate game to play exclusively. Heck, employing any of your companions as advisors who will approach you about a delicate matter related to any of the stats concerning your authority. Population, relation, military, culture, divine, loyalty, arcane, stability, espionage, and community.

Decent-to-quality sidequests and errands are plentiful and ultimately awesome to complete. Enhanced my experience during my adventures. Here is a small taste of what I encountered. Uncovering a dark mega villain through a long monster extermination hunt Mediated between fey beings on trees and preached to no end on civility, peace, and compromise during heated debates and mob pitchforks.

Now then for my mixed feelings. Consider the following text as small to big red flags in varying degrees. I feel are worth noting down. I had to trim this a bit since this review is getting too long and I apologize for that.

Kingdom Building is a mixed bag. I love the aspect of erecting settlements and determining the kinds of architecture. However the ‘time-limit’ before the next act and what to do perhaps make newcomers feel pressured and quite honestly have no clue what to do. I had to frequently Google and ask my friends about priorities.

However, tiredness will undoubtedly occur. I had to stop playing kingmaker constantly in 2023 due to fatigue. The sheer amount of content if you combine the DLC is a lot for anyone’s plate. Acts on average took me 20 hours give or take some change to complete considering there are a total of 8 acts. If you count the act-like DLC Varnhold and the roguelike beneath the stolen lands. You’re easily reaching 150+. This is a friendly reminder to stop and take a break in case you are feeling burned out.

I think some rules for Pathfinder in general are too restrictive and punishing. This isn’t a negative against Owlcat; rather they did a phenomenal job adapting the tabletop ruleset for the videogame audience. Paizo the company from my understanding created the IP and surrounding laws within. Here are notable head-scratchers. I am not allowed unlimited lockpicking?

Owlcat’s version of Pathfinder gamified is an incredibly ambitious undertaking. Took me nearly a year to finish in its entirety and while I did have some annoyances from the ruleset, scattered loading times, and mixed feelings. There’s quite a bit to enjoy among the many systems within. I liked overseeing my realm. Making tough decisions based on fair policies and having an immediate effect on my subjects whether good or bad. I delved deep to understand the deep mechanics in real time and pause. Yet at the end of the day, I think the amount of gratification here despite the herculean effort the devs have encompassed with a gigantic stuff to devour is dependent on the user's experience to get down in the trenches. A double-edged sword. If I never knew about skill checks and buffing, then I would have suffered early on because of my ignorance in taking advantage of magical resistances. If I didn’t read up on how to manage my provinces better, then possibly in a bad alternate universe I would’ve game over in my 100+ hour run due to my improper handling and neglect of the state of affairs. And that is NOT a feeling I want anyone to suffer with. Considering the reports I've read online of users having the same issues of neglecting their nation. Please make sure to check 'invincible kingdom' in the options. Speaks volumes how much you have to devote yourself to bring out something worthwhile. And for me? I think this is certainly one of the greats along with Baldur’s Gate. As long as you dedicate enough energy inside. A deep & expansive CRPG that doesn’t hold your hand, but rewards the most invested of players. Sadly I find this incredibly difficult to recommend to everyone. Except only to fans of the genre. I believe Mandaloregaming said it best "... you play this game more for the systems than for the writing." And I can’t help but agree with their statement despite him saying the line in his story section. I would say it also accounts for the whole breadth of the game itself.

7.6/10

This review was heavily edited to fit the 8000 character limit. For the full text you can read it here

After 2 full gameplays (the first I gave up at the very final zone years ago) and completing the game (while I finished its successor WoTR already before) I finally feel for giving a review.
Overall how I would describe Kingmaker - it is an epic cRPG. It has all the attributes you expect from such a title - it is a very large, complex, rich story with many side stories, heroic companions and fights with monsters and antagonists alike, meaningful choices that have an impact on story development with heroic or less-so-heroic deeds and choices by player.
There is also a strategic layout over the base game aka "kingdom management" that really builds up a feeling of responsibility for the country, the ability to shape it and one feels as real ruler.
In oldschool tradition game mechanics stay on a solid tabletop system (though sometimes possibly don't work exactly as tabletop and players just argue if it is intentional or bugged) Overall I would say it is among the best hand crafted tabletop experience available.
This all sounds great and such game could easily target the highest ratings... however, there are some "buts" that can be eventually very frustrating.
So what are the biggest caveats:
- kingdom management while entertaining comes together with a time-limited main quest line. It is poorly described and not always intuitive (eg. on one hand it is possible to argue that the threat of troll invasion should be dealt it with priority, but by spending time on kingdom projects and dealing with kingdom issues on fly, one can fall into the spiral where more and more issues arise, they need more and more time and attention and inevitably start the path to lose the game. If you know what to expect or simply rush for each main quest task ignoring everything else it is fine - you do what you are expected and will have fine nice progress. If you hesitate and make a few wrong choices you can find yourself in a situation where you lose the game without a chance of reverting it or having any troubles in dungeoning part.
- related to the previous is the time limit on main quests. It is reasonably long and creates a good feeling of press that drive the story and player action. However it really demand prioritization mostly in kingdom management and also has few traps for unawared player (one very obvious is the use of rations during camping vs hunting - easy to miss in camp management but hunting can take even 24 hours compared to default 8 per rest.. in time it sums up and if you will miss some 14, 30.. days in timers it is very relevant)
- For both reasons above I actually highly suggest to use Kingdom Resolution mod. Cut all kingdom event resolution time in half, reduce ruler attendance to 1 day and you will get much much enjoyable experience instead of "game over out of nowhere"
- last but not least what is major for me is game difficulty - or better say how unbalanced it is. First of all making a good character build in Kingmaker with plethora of feats, abilities and multiclass combinations is not an easy task without good knowledge of rules and practice. It dont even help most NPC companions you meet are stat inferior and require very specific builds to not feel as dead weight.
Second connected and where I hit hard walls and was frustrated most are encounters - even though there is semi-open world with opened locations, the regions are story-locked and new always unlock only in follower chapters. That is fine but encounter and monster distribution do not respect it and are placed in the world almost without any relation to the expected level that player party can have when visiting the place. That overall create situation where especially early levels might be very frustrating as with level 2 party you bump into lvl 8 monsters and so on (which can be defeated by using very good min-maxed/max buffed party or specific tactic.. otherwise it is frustrating wipefest) while especially later you go location after lcoation in "autopilot" mode where you dont need pay too much attention or use spells/abilities as 9/10 just die before you realize the details. (until you again hit some enemies that just wipe your party like nothing and you start study the encounter from scratch and look for every trick you can use...).
I would understand if this would be a case for boss/story fights but it is in fact more like random cave occupied by a trio of wererats you just found.. and once you have multiple of such encounters in a row, the balance feeling is really off (and this all is on normal difficulty with decent DnD knowledge - I would simply expect more reasonable balance experience like old Baldur gate - considering playing on normal difficulty no deep knowledge of rules should be expected and required, considering there are 3 harder difficulties still.
Also small note to bugs and performance issues - but more like their absence in my case. There is a narrative how terribly buggy the game is or how bad it has performance or loading times. I personally met only bare minimum issues in over 300 hours, maybe I just have better habits, HW configuration or different personal perception but I simply never had any issues or wrong impression others sometime present. And if there were really big issues at release I would say they are long ironed out.
So after all, despite its flaws, for me Kingmaker stays as extremely good transition of Tabletop experience, a game I always looked forward since crawling dungeons and Baldur gate 1. It also serves as basis for following WoTR title that is overall better,
Hence rating 8/10 but if someone going to buy please consider well the caveats above be sure you consider them well (I am extremely patient and RPG veteran to dealt with them - but I totally see why for someone the game can be total no go)
Also Kingmaker successor WoTR is likely better title to play today.

Even the imperfections had their own charm. The flaws and shortcomings added to the experience, giving everything a unique feel. I genuinely enjoyed this game.