Hey!!
So here’s my opinion.
They’re very similar yet different games.
Divinity is straight turn based, the game stops in a fight, moves are based on initiative (like d&d), and it goes from there. Varied skills available and talents, but of course in hard there’s a path to follow for ideal damage.
It’s also coop which is super cool if you want to play with someone. Like totally cool. On ps4 my gf and I played and it was great. Single screen when together, split when apart. And the characters have their own identities.
PoE is strictly single player. RTS, so no real turns. You get into combat, the game pauses, you select your next abilities (mage cast fireball, priest cast debuff, tank warrior charge in, etc) unpause and it starts. You can (and should) pause regularly to ensure you are handling the fights and not getting beat down.
Also there’s a super cool class in it called cipher which does physical and mental combat. Hard to compare to wow but like a combat capable (either ranged or melee, your choice) warlock/spriest.
Both games have large chapter based stories with lots of reading (which is great if you’re willing to read) and diverse characters.
Everything matters and is permanent (unless you reload your save). You can steal, kill townspeople, everything. But once they’re dead, they’re dead.
That goes for combat with enemies too. They do not respawn. So there’s no farming.
If I had to go with one for single player only, I’d do pillars first. By a slim margin tbh. My gf and I played the entirety of divinity twice through, and it was awesome. Both games have npc party members with individual stories for you to help with.
Oh yea, and in pillars you get to build up a much better version of the wow garrison and there’s a lot more engagement with it.
And there’s factions you can choose to help or become enemies of.
And now I’m going to drive home and play pillars.
)