First time playing WotR. Just reached the point where Ulbrig appears. So far I'm struggling to understand why people are so captivated by this game. The companions feel like placeholders and none of them have any compelling reason to join your party.

The 'battle across the city' premise is interesting thematically but so far it's manifested as 'go to a manor and clear it of looters for a fake noble,' 'go to a looted shop to identify the traitor among a group of thieves' and 'go to these points of interest on the map to fight one or two slightly stronger demons than the ones that appear in random encounters.'

The tavern defence battle was also mostly just a test of patience against waves of the weakest mobs.

I also know the crusade mode which follows once you finish the Kenabres section is universally hated, so what have I got to look forward to? Am I missing something? Does the game change significantly after the first few hours or is this pretty much it?