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    #1

    Baldur's Gate -- spoilers for all games

    Who knows how popular this will be in this day and age, but boy was it ever popular way back. Bioware has even called Dragon Age the "spiritual successor" to BG.

    So today when I came across news that someone is making an "Enhanced Edition"/remake of Baldur's Gate, I thought it might be a good time to start a thread


    Unfortunately I never really played them when they were new--I was a young and stupid FPS kid. But I'll for damned sure be playing this, even though it's not Bioware doing the development.


    1998 -- Baldur's Gate
    1999 -- Baldur's Gate: Tales of the Sword Coast (expansion)
    2000 -- Baldur's Gate II: Shadows of Amn
    2001 -- Baldur's Gate II: Throne of Bhaal (expansion)
    "A society grows great when old men plant trees, the shade of which they know they will never sit in. Good people do things for other people. That's it, the end." -- Penelope Wilton in Ricky Gervais's After Life
    Tags: baldur's gate, video games
    #2
    I have to wonder how they're going to "enhance" the original game. There is a fantastic and still-active modding community out there for all the games. For example, the original BG can be played with the improved graphics/gameplay of BG2, using the TuTu mod. There are new user-created NPCs, a wide variety of different 'tweaks' to improve the game and make it more sensible, as well as a vast collection of custom avatars, courtesy of sites like kirith.com

    I fear that whenever anybody tries to 'improve' or 'remaster' or 'enhance' a game, they end up ruining what made it so wonderful in the first place. I also fear that the resources developed for all the games by talented and dedicated modders over the past 15 years won't work with the new edition, depriving new players to some fantastic custom content.

    I personally still play the BG series to this day... in fact, I was playing BG2 just last week, as I waited for my copy of Mass Effect 3 to arrive. I've probably finished that game, including its ToB expansion, about 17 times. Often as a cleric of Lathander. One of my favourite gods and favourite classes. Games running off 3ed rules and 3.5 rules ruined clerics for me, so I get a warm fuzzy feeling deep inside whenever I play one in BG2 and unleash Storm of Vengeance upon my enemies. Great for killing dragons.

    Anyway, I probably won't play the 'enhanced' edition. Not unless I get some great feedback from reliable sources (ie, people who have played the original series as much as me) and can confirm that there's been improvement. Or, at the very least, it hasn't decreased the BG experience.
    Beware of he who would deny you access to information, for in his heart he dreams himself your master.


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      #3
      I think I still had both BG I & II installed before the P4 died...
      *checks HDD*
      Oh, right, I removed BG I. BG II folder still there, dunno if it'll run (haven't re-installed it...just moved the HDD from the other PC)
      I don't recall ever finishing either game (my younger bro finished it, and I kinda watched parts of it while he played the games years ago)

      As for the Enhanced Edition: I'll wait for more info and decide, then, if I'll get it.
      My problem w/ older games is that there should be nothing 'shiny new' installed or on the horizon before I can play them.
      I don't want to think I've become a 'graphics w***e', but...
      (I do still play games that use sprites, but those are usually grand strategy games....for most everything else, including RPGs, I get distracted by the shiny)
      sigpic

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        #4
        The graphics of the BG series (in fact, any Infinity Engine game you can care to mention, from PS:T right through to IWDII) are just beautiful. The hand-drawn backgrounds might look very 2d these days, but they suit the top-down/god-view perspective perfectly.

        IMO, Neverwinter Nights was a massive step back. Sure, it was 3d environment, but everything was blocky and plain and boring tilesets. Obsidian managed to fix things a little with NWN2, using the updated Aurora (Electron) engine to smooth the graphics out and make things looks less ghastly, but I think too much emphasis was placed on "shiny water!" and "cool spell effects!", and not enough on making something truly original. At least it was still more original than NWN's multitude of near-identical tilesets, though.
        Beware of he who would deny you access to information, for in his heart he dreams himself your master.


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          #5
          Well, yeah. Actually, a lot of the older top-down stuff (BG series, Fallout 1/2/tactics, Arcanum, etc.) are still quite pretty.

          As for Aurora, it didn't really look 'great' 'til the Witcher, IMHO.
          I do agree that, in a way/visually, it was a 'step back' from the visuals of the BG series.
          sigpic

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            #6
            I did like The Witcher graphics a lot, I thought they were very original and well done.

            But for me, nothing will match the beauty of the hand-drawn 2d backgrounds from IE games. Even the Mass Effect series, which I think are really awesome, tend to pale a bit in comparison.

            But then, I am one of those people who reminisces fondly about the internet before Flash was around, and when CSS was just a pipe-dream. AKA, the dialup days. It was slow as hell but it was small and you could guarantee intelligent discussion on usenet. MMORPGS were just MUDS and they were (and still are) fantastic.

            *rocks neurotically in rocking chair*
            Beware of he who would deny you access to information, for in his heart he dreams himself your master.


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              #7
              hehehe. well, I've tried a few MUDs in the past...but I don't think I can go back.

              <--- is now a graphics wh*re

              A game I played late (i.e., via dosbox), but wish there'd be an update/enhanced edition for: Darklands (even if it were to remain 2D)

              Beware nostalgia! Some stuff look better in our memories than they really are
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                #8
                Some stuff stands up pretty decently though. Not too long ago I re-played original Doom and loved every minute of it
                "A society grows great when old men plant trees, the shade of which they know they will never sit in. Good people do things for other people. That's it, the end." -- Penelope Wilton in Ricky Gervais's After Life

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                  #9
                  the really old FPSs I could never go back to.
                  Wolfenstein, Doom, Quake, etc. made me dizzy back then, and they still do. I guess that's one reason I loved Rainbow Six and Ghost Recon.
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                    #10
                    Seems the "Enhanced" version will be available on iPad (link doesn't say what other systems), and it will include the original game, the expansion pack, new material and a new companion....


                    You’ll Be Able To Play Baldur’s Gate On Your iPad This Summer

                    PC role-playing game Baldur's Gate will soon be living in a post-PC world. The beloved classic will be out for iPad this summer, developer Overhaul Games said today.

                    It will also feature new content (!) and a new party member (!!!).

                    Overhaul writes in a press release:
                    Running on an upgraded and improved version of the Infinity Engine, Baldur's Gate: Enhanced Edition™ will include the entire Baldur's Gate adventure, the Tales of the Sword Coast expansion pack, and never before seen content including a new adventure and new party member.
                    "A society grows great when old men plant trees, the shade of which they know they will never sit in. Good people do things for other people. That's it, the end." -- Penelope Wilton in Ricky Gervais's After Life

                    Comment

                      #11
                      Originally posted by DigiFluid View Post
                      You’ll Be Able To Play Baldur’s Gate On Your iPad This Summer
                      I don't have, or want one!!

                      android all the way

                      http://www.pcgamer.com/2012/03/19/ba...-enhanced-dev/

                      i'll buy the enhanced versions..... for pc. i love the originals too but these days its more of a chore to get working unless you keep an ancient pc. which i don't.

                      just need someone to do droid/ipad conversions of fallout/planescape/wasteland/jagged alliance etc
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                      EMBRACE DEMOCRACY, OR YOU WILL BE ERADICATED
                      -Liberty Prime

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