There are still months until release but finally Pillars of Eternity - Obsidian's Kickstarter darling - is playable.

It's in Backer Beta, a phase you can't buy into unless you're a backer, but I snagged an invite and went in.

What's immediately apparent, and what I show in the video, is how punishing combat can be. Oh, to have your party of armed warriors fall to beetles. It's a topic Dan Whitehead touched on in our recent Pillars of Eternity appraisal.

What I also hope I show in the video is the sumptuous painterly style and pleasant feel the world has. This is a slow game, one you'll explore for hours, but spending time in Pillars' company - outside of combat - ought be no chore at all. Your imagination can do in Pillars what an army of animators would struggle to do elsewhere.

Note that none of the companions you'll see in the video will be in the full game. They are placeholders. None of the content you will see is important to the game's story either, so you can watch without fear of spoilers.

Remember, too, that this is a testing phase intended to iron the formula out. Pillars of Eternity has an - ambitious, I must say - release date of winter 2014 on PC and Mac.

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