In What Order Should I Play the Divinity Games?
Divinity is a franchise of role-playing games (RPGs). Divinity video games are known for their deep storyline, immersive game world, atmospheric gameplay experience and freedom of choice in the gameplay. Due to these unique characteristics, Divinity RPGs are widely regarded by RPG fans as classics of this game genre.
What Are Divinity Games Like?
In general, Divinity video games are RPGs, in the sense that the game character is able to develop throughout the game by fighting enemies, finding better equipment and completing quest, while progressing the game storyline. Unlike other RPGs, Divinity games usually feature a reasonable amount of freedom of choice in the gameplay, in the sense that the game character is presented with multiple choices when progressing in quests. Divinity video games are set in a medieval high fantasy world known as Rivellon, inhabited by different species of beings besides humans, such as orcs, elfs, undead, among others. For this reason, Divinity video games can be described as medieval high fantasy RPGs.
It is notable how Divinity games feature a different gameplay from each other. The first two Divinity games to be released, Divine Divinity and Beyond Divinity, featured an isometric camera perspective as well as an action RPG gameplay, similar to games such as Diablo (1996) and Diablo II (2000). Divinity II, on the other hand, featured a third-person camera perspective with a hack-and-slash action RPG gameplay. Divinity: Dragon Commander is often considered to be a strategy RPG, whereas Divinity: Original Sin and Divinity: Original Sin II are often described as computer role-playing games (cRPGs), featuring an isometric camera perspective and turn-based combat gameplay. In the case of Divinity: Original Sin and Divinity: Original Sin II, despite being RPGs, their turn-based combat gameplay could be described as being similar to XCOM: Enemy Unknown (2012). Despite these gameplay differences across Divinity games, all of these games have role-playing game elements and are accurately described as RPGs.
In What Order Should I Play the Divinity Games?
The Divinity video games can be played and enjoyed in any order. However, considering that these are story-driven narrative games, as well as RPGs, for players looking for the most comprehensive story experience, it is suggested to play these games in the chronological story order, as this story order will allow players to have a better sense of the backstory of each Divinity game as well as the games universe.
While the chronological story order is the suggested order for the most comprehensive story experience, there are other playthrough orders which are often used by RPG fans and players. One order is playing Divine Divinity, then Beyond Divinity and then Divinity II. Another order is playing Divinity: Original Sin II and then Divinity: Original Sin II. While these playthrough orders are reasonable from the point of view of playing games with a similar gameplay, as Divine Divinity, Beyond Divinity and Divinity II are action RPGs, whereas Divinity: Original Sin and Divinity: Original Sin II are turn-based RPGs, the suggested order for most RPG fans is to play the Divinity video games in chronological story order as this order will provide the most comprehensive story experience of the Divinity video games universe and lore.
The Story Timeline Order of the Divinity Video Games
This is the story timeline order of the Divinity video games. This is not the same as the chronological order of release of these games. Instead, this is the order in which the story events of each game take place. This is the suggested order in which to play these games for the most comprehensive story experience possible. It is notable how different the chronological story order is from the chronological order of release. For example, Divinity: Original Sin was released after Divinity II, but takes place before Divine Divinity.
Divinity: Dragon Commander
Divinity: Original Sin
Divine Divinity
Beyond Divinity
Divinity: Original Sin II
Divinity II | Divinity II: Ego Draconis | Divinity II: The Dragon Knight Saga | Divinity II: Developer's Cut
Divinity II received different versions over time, such as the original Divinity II: Ego Draconis, and the later Divinity II: The Dragon Knight Saga and Divinity II: Developer's Cut. While these are different versions of Divinity II, they contain the same essential main story (with the addition of the expansion Flames of Vengeance in Divinity II: The Dragon Knight Saga and Divinity II: Developer's Cut). The expansion Flames of Vengeance continues the story of Divinity II: Ego Draconis. In other words, the expansion Flames of Vengeance is set after the story events of Divinity II: Ego Draconis. For this reason, in this chronological story order that I wrote of the Divinity games, it is suggested to play Divinity II: Flames of Vengeance after having played Divinity II: Ego Draconis. For more information regarding the different names of Divinity II, I wrote the "Are There Different Divinity II Games?" section in this article. For the purpose of playing the Divinity video games in chronological story order, I suggest to play Divinity II: Ego Draconis initially, and then to play Divinity II: Flames of Vengeance.
Is Divinity: Dragon Commander Canon?
Considering that Divinity: Dragon Commander features a gameplay that is quite different to most of the other Divinity video games, some Divinity fans and RPG players think that Divinity: Dragon Commander is not a canon Divinity game. However, despite gameplay differences, Divinity: Dragon Commander is set in the same universe as the other Divinity video games, and is an important part in the overall Divinity game storyline. Divinity: Dragon Commander is set thousands of years before most of the other Divinity video games.
Is Divinity: Original Sin a Reboot of the Divinity Games?
Players sometimes think that Divinity: Original Sin is a reboot to the storyline of the Divinity video games. However, Divinity: Original Sin is set in a different time period when compared to most of the other Divinity games. To be more specific, Divinity: Original Sin is set before Divine Divinity. Considering that these games are set in different time periods, but still take place in the same game universe, Divinity: Original Sin is not a reboot of Divine Divinity, but rather, a different game that belongs to the same fictional game universe.
Are There Different Divinity II Games?
The video game Divinity II is known by different names, such as Divinity II, Divinity II: Ego Draconis, Divinity II: The Dragon Knight Saga, as well as Divinity II: Developer's Cut. Divinity II was originally released as Divinity II: Ego Draconis. Some time later, with the addition of the expansion Flames of Vengeance, Divinity II was then re-released as Divinity II: The Dragon Knight Saga, which includes the original game, Divinity II: Ego Draconis, as well as the expansion Flames of Vengeance. Some time later, Divinity II was re-released, with additional content, as Divinity II: Developer's Cut, which includes the content of Divinity II: The Dragon Knight Saga, which would be Divinity II: Ego Draconis as well as the expansion Flames of Vengeance.
If you are interested in the story timeline order of RPG video games, you may also be interested in checking out the story timeline orders of Dungeons & Dragons, Final Fantasy, The Elder Scrolls and The Witcher.
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