To me, Dungeons and Dragons has always been about messing around in a fantastical setting with friends, with almost no limit to creative freedom. You aren't constrained to certain actions or dialogue choices. You can be as creative as you want with the items you're given. Video games are intrinsically the exact opposite in almost every single way. To make a good video game certain things are required, and those things always take away a little bit of player freedom and creativity, no matter how small. The developers can't simply allow you to do anything and everything you want, no matter how hard they try. This is what separates D&D from videogames.

Despite this fact, video games have been trying to tap into the fantasy and creativity that makes D&D so special, with varying levels of success. In March 26, 2015, Pillars of Eternity was released, and so far I think it's come the closest to replicating the magic (pun intended) of D&D.

Roleplaying

One of the most important parts of D&D is creating your character. You choose a race, make up a backstory, and select the items and knowledge you'll carry with you on your journey. Similarly, most RPG games have a character creation mechanic at the start of the game for you to create the role you'll be playing. However, no game I've come across to date has the same amount of depth that Pillars of Eternity's has. It starts off generic---sex, race, class, appearance---but then it starts to get interesting. You can choose a subrace of your initial race, modify attributes(including, might I add a constitution attribute), select a culture, and select a background. It does a fantastic job of creating that same feeling of making a character sheet and coming up with what personality and background your character has. Not to mention, these choices will have impacts, minor and major, on your playthrough. Dialogue options are removed or added, new ways to tackle encounters are introduced, some questlines are opened or closed off, and you'll have a certain reputation with certain groups right out of the gate(which you can later change through actions and dialogue).

Speaking of dialogue...

There's tons of it. I'd say about 85% of this entire game is talking, and that's not a bad things, surprisingly. Pillars of Eternity is developed by Obsidian Entertainment, the same team behind games such as Fallout: New Vegas and Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, so the fact that this game has some of the best writing in a video game I've ever seen shouldn't come as a surprise. Still, the quality swept me off my feet. Whitty remarks, emotionally packed moments, naturalistic banter between party members, creative exposition, etc. etc. etc., all done amazingly well. The sheer amount of dialogue is crazy as well. Throw-away characters that you only meet once or twice will have a short book worth of shit to say, and there is usually a dialogue choice for every possible question or reaction. Of course, you don't have the natural feel and creativity that comes from interacting with an actual person, but there's still plenty of options to choose from, they work well, and they are well-written.

The world

Another major component of D&D is the setting. Castles, dragons, bustling towns with shops and people everywhere, fantastical beasts around every corner, magic in the air, and often a pure manifestation of evil in one form or another. Pillars of Eternity also manages to hit this point on the head, nailing home the feel I've come to expect from a good fantasy setting. The music, sound design, artwork, story, creature and level design, characters, and everything in between make for a unique yet familiar setting.

Combat

D&D combat is turn-based, but I think the direction Pillars of Eternity took works just as well. By having it be real-time with variable speed and a pause mechanic, you keep the same ability to take a moment to breath and strategize while still having exciting encounters. Not to mention, the aforementioned strategy has just as much depth as a normal D&D encounter would. You have to size up the situation and pick which ability, character, or weapon to use for maximum effectiveness. This is also encouraged by the game's difficulty, which forces the player to adapt and strategize if they want a chance at survival.

Other features that I love

• Bestiary - as you fight more and more creatures, you'll fill your your bestiary. The bestiary notes the different types of enemies, their behaviors, their weaknesses, their strengths, and other facts and tidbits of information about them. And while it's not a new concept, it's very interesting learning about Obsidian's unique spin on classic fantasy creatures, as well as the new one's they've introduced.
• In-game notes - one concept that is new, however, is the addition of in-game notes in the journal menu. Being able to jot down important details or little notes to remember later is extremely helpful, as well as helping to give the player back a little of that creativity and freedom.
• journal - speaking about the journal menu, it's another very helpful feature. The ability to view a recap of your entire adventure so far, create the aforementioned in-game notes, the also aforementioned bestiary, and the quest list that separates by type and is organized by date all help greatly increase quality of life and makes your adventure just a little bit easier.
• Watcher concept - the game's main story follows your personal struggle with a newfound mysterious power. You find out this power makes you a "watcher," someone who can perceive and interact with a person's soul. This is a very cool concept and it makes the story a lot more interesting. However, it is also utilized very effectively as a gameplay mechanic, most notably letting you see snippets of an NPC's past.

All in all, Pillars of Eternity is a fantastic game, one of my favorites, and it's biggest achievement is how well it converts what makes D&D special into the contrasting medium of video games.