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Go forth and conquer

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 25 / 25
Date: December 28, 1999
Author: Amazon User

Baldur's Gate finally consumates the promising mariage of computing power and role-playing games. However, it's not for everyone.

I cut my RPG teeth on pen and paper geeking out in my buddies' basements. In the post-Commmodre-64 Era, I slogged through all of the original Ultimas and developed a high-patience threshold playing "Bane of the Cosmic Forge" on my Macintosh classic. (Imagine the bit-mapped dungeon slogging by on a tiny Mac screen, the horror.)

When I finally took the plunge last year and delved into the modern world of computer gaming on a newly-purchased PC I was overwhelmed with the fast action, fabulous graphics of most of the games out there. But Baldur's gate is the game for an old foggy like me who can't get up to speed with the methed-out the hyper-activity of circle-strafing Quake II enemies.

First, it's cerebral. This is not the game for people who enjoy the thoughless slaughter of Quake II. If you like puzzling over the right combinations of weapons, armor and magic, you will love Baldur's Gate.One of the things I enjoyed most about Diablo was this puzzling ("Would the battle axe of the moon be better than...") but I hated when you ran out of weapons to acquire in Diablo. Baldur's Gate has six characters to juggle equipment with and when you add that to the AD&D limitations on who can use what you have some wonderful tinkering.

Second, it's immersive. There is this feeling that you can go and do whatever you want. You are tied to a linear storyline but it will always wait for you to return from the numerous side quests. Go explore the woods to the east storm the Gnoll stronghold, it's up to you.

Finally, your actions have consequences. The choices you make in selecting party members and interacting with NPC's impacts how the story unfolds. This is the most compelling aspect of the game for me. If you chose to slay that guard over a stolen haubrak the evil characters in your party will rejoice will the lawful good paladin will decry his association with you.Your reputation will rise and fall based on your actions and this will affect game play down the road. Finding the right balance of allignments and actions is a pleasure and in encourages and entire replay of the whole game.

The game's main shortcomings lie in the party AI. Sometimes you have to babysit your characters negotiation of obstacles. Some people complain about the combat but I disagree, tinkering with various tactics against new enemies is part of the game's joy.When you get some tactics down for a certain baddie just let the AI take over and open a beverage.

In reading some of the other customer reviews I've seen two different players: Those who hate Baldur's Gate because it's slow and tedious at times and those who love it because it is a graphic incarnation of the beloved AD&D rulebook. Gamers who cannot swallow thier need to run and shoot, maim and kill will probably not like Baldur's Gate. However, if you enjoy tinkering and exploring a vastly varied world in style you will love it. And hey you won't have to dig up your 32-sided dice.

AD&D the way it is supposed to be

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 29 / 31
Date: September 15, 2000
Author: Amazon User

After rereading the `Lord of the Rings' series, I had put myself back into a fantasy state of mind. It had been many years since my brother and I wielded stacks of paper, dice and books to an imaginary game that was so intriguing because as a player you had such dynamic freedom of action and decisions. I wanted a game that would make me feel like that, and I found it when I stumbled across Baldur's Gate. It is the most perfect AD&D game I have played to date.

You create your main character and customize him or her to your liking. All other characters must be encountered and often convinced to join. There are well over twenty characters that I encountered in my game play, although your party can only consist of six characters at a time. Once a character joins your party, you have complete control of them (unless your actions violate their alignment). One of the greatest benefits of controlling the characters with a computer (as opposed to on paper) is that it is much easier to control and remember all the variables that each character and class has. When in control of a character, your icon controls are specific to that class; so it is very easy to quickly switch your thief into stealth/backstab mode, to have your cleric turn undead, to have your bard sing an inspiring battle song, to have your ranger charm an animal. Also with the computer, you don't have to worry about all the little variables that affect a characters abilities; weapon proficiencies, THACO, abilities granted by magic items. This makes for a much cleaner enjoyable game.

The gaming world is huge. Each new area you enter is completely original with beautiful new graphics, random monster encounters, and so very many sub-quests. On average, I think that each area on the map had at least 3, sometimes 4 sub-quests to be completed. But only if you want to, the progression of the game is completely non-linear, YOU DO WHATEVER YOU WANT!! Fight or talk, steal or buy, fight the bad guys or join the bad guys. There is a major plot line that your main character is forced into. You simply remain ignorant of new areas on the map until you have completed a chapter by ending a major quest. My only complaint of Baldur's Gate is that there are so many variables in the game play, I wonder what all I've missed.

Upon completion of Baldur's Gate, your character is saved so that you may load him into Baldur's Gate II. (In Part I, you are only allowed to progress to Level 7 or 8; this is why) . I strongly recommend playing Baldur's Gate first and not jumping straight to Part II. Part II has much that Part I does not: another two years of technology, AD&D 3rd Addition Rules, Character Kits, Ability to get a stronghold (castle). You would be selling yourself short by missing the development of your own character, as well as one of the best games you would have ever played. I am pretty certain that Part II will blow Part I out of the water, as far as being the greatest game. As great as Part I seems to me now, it would be terrible to play Part II, fall in love with the game, decided to play Part I, and then think that Part I was not very good in comparison.

PLAY `BALDUR'S GATE' RIGHT NOW!!!

A Review for those Non-AD & D folks

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 21 / 22
Date: April 05, 2001
Author: Amazon User

I'll state from the outset that my background in RPGs is limited. Sure, I had friends who would gather together on Friday or Saturday nights to play pen and paper D&D, but I was never among them. Occasionally, however, I did enjoy playing computer-based Role-playing games (the three Bard's Tale adventures).

I say all this in an effort to convince non-AD&D people or non-RPG players out there to give Baldur's Gate a chance. Yes, AD&D rules are numerous and complicated (I have no idea, for instance, what 6D+4 means), but don't worry too much because the computer takes care of all this for you. Essentially, you'll encounter enemies, you'll push your spacebar (to pause the action) and point and click, directing your party members how and whom to attack. The computer calculates all the die-rolling stuff. You just sit back and watch the blood fly. This is not to say, however, that BG is a brainless game. In fact, you'll learn quickly that "Fools Rush In" if you don't think about battle strategy. Put simply, Baldur's Gate achieves a perfect balance: it both satisfies hardcore D&D folk who have long clamored for an accurate PC RPG experience while also not scaring away newbies.

This is not to say that BG doesn't take some learning. The manual is thick and at times confusing (particularly in how to memorize spells). There are lots of options in BG, so you'll have to become familiar with the game interface and inventory system. Be prepared to spend several hours just getting comfortable with how the game operates. Also be prepared to die a lot in the beginning.

Once you've mastered the controls, this game gets addictive, and fast! BG is now an older title, and with BGII having been out now for over half a year, the original is currently a bargain bin purchase. I bought my copy through an online auction for eight bucks. Those eight dollars provided me with six weeks of constant gameplaying. Most action games can be completed in less than a week, but BG was vast and involving. The world is huge and sprawling, side quests are seemingly infinite, and replay value is a bonus.

So why four stars? Well, like many people, I have my subjective, nit-picky problems. First, the pathfinding is pretty weak. It's mostly okay when you're out in the open, but in dungeons, the pathfinding is flat-out horrible. I barely escaped the Firewine dungeon alive because whenever I'd get into a battle and order my commands, my party members would then stupidly go off in six separate and unexpected directions. Second, although the world is huge, it does get tedious trudging across the BG map. At times, the game can feel like a chore to explore that unnamed wilderness section that's located leagues away from where you truly need to go only because, well, you feel there might be something interesting there. Third, going up levels takes a long time. Don't get me wrong, I realize that going up levels shouldn't be too easy to accomplish, but it's kind of disheartening to only be a level seven fighter at the end of the game (because there's an experience point cap of 89,000) with thirty-odd hit points. Either raise the cap or make level limits a bit lower. Lastly, although hardcore gamers may love the myriad spells, weapons, and potions, I felt there were too many. Your party members don't have many slots for carrying items, and all those items you find during your travels (potions in particular) become annoying (should I use such-and-such potion immediately? should I save it for a big battle? should I sell it and make money? should I simply leave it behind).

Still, despite the quirks, I've never been so deeply involved in a PC game, and I'm looking forward to my next purchases: Icewind Dale and BGII.

A great game, and a must have for all AD&D fans

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 20 / 21
Date: January 31, 2000
Author: Amazon User

This is a quality product by anyones standards. First lets review the good things. 1. A great portrayal of the original AD&D rule set complete with intiative and you can even turn on the dice roles to see exactly what the roles you are getting are. 2. A good story with numerous plot twists and an overall addictive game. 3. An amazing amount of detail and subplots was put in especially in the city of Baldur's Gate which is huge, and by far the biggest city I have ever seen in a PC AD&D game. 4. The amount of diversity of race and class make for a very attractice replayability. Let's Look at the bad. 1. A terrible multi-play engine that is virtually unplayable. 2. You walk to slow on the normal game screen and tends to draw out game play a little to much, which I think they have fixed in the upcoming Baldur's Gate II. 3. A very anoying experience cap is set at 89,000 for the game and 160,000 or so for the expansion. Over all I think the game was a big success, and to date the best AD&D game made for the PC console. I wait in anticipation of Baldurs Gate II.

The Mother of all D&D Video Games

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 23 / 26
Date: November 30, 1999
Author: Amazon User

As one of the few people who fondly remembers the old SSI "gold box" games, I have been looking forward to Baldur's Gate for almost 2 years. The game ended up surpassing even my ultra-high expectations. The graphics, music, sound effects, storyline, and dialogue are all top notch, and the game has even addicted my non-RPG fanatic fiancee. The game is tough, but not impossible. I end up having to reload certain fights 4-5 times to win, trying different strategies each time. The game is also more faithful to the "true" D&D rules than any other. (ie, magic items are carefully meted out, not just found in bushes beside the road.)

One minor complaint: Drizzt Du'orden and Elminster are humonga-chodes, two of the silliest, stupidest, most ill-conceived and contrived characters in the history of Role-Playing, and I was not amused to find them in the game. No biggie. I killed Drizzt and took his magical chain mail and sword. :)

I have not been this wrapped up and involved in a game since I bought Civilization II.

Kiss your family and friends good-bye, stock the fridge, and enjoy Baldur's Gate.

After 6 Years It Remains One of The Best

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 17 / 17
Date: December 15, 2004
Author: Amazon User

I unearthed this gem among my collection of old games after a recent move, and I promply popped it in to play out of nostalgia after experiencing a string of disappointing RPG's on the PC. 2 Weeks later I emerged to write the review this wonderful game deserves.

The game is set in Faerun, of the Dungeons and Dragons fame. Don't worry though you will not need to know basically anything about Faerun at first to enjoy the land and it's people, which is why this game is so wonderful. Once you are in the game and playing you will not feel out of place at all. If you are looking for a unique and seamless fantasy setting then you have found it. This is a beautiful world teeming with life and unique characters and once you finish Baldur's Gate, I know you will read up more on this "Faerun." It is that immersive.

Soundwise, this game was a breakthrough in video game entertainment. Bioware outdid itself with its ambient environmental effects. Enter a forest area and you can hear birds and natural wildlife along with trees swaying and wind blowing. When rain comes, it comes with excellent audio. I'm telling you, crank up your fancy speakers and listen! You will become immersed. The towns are constantly alive with sounds of commotion and people shouting. Masterful. The combat sounds such as spell effects and weapons hitting flesh along with the music is commendable as well.

You all play CRPG's for the story right? Even as a couple of Diablo fanboys scamper out I'm going to tell you that the Baldur's Gate saga is one of the great storytelling achievements not just in videogames but literature as well. Call me crazy but I enjoyed the story that much! Oh and don't read the crap novels based on this game the author did it no justice. Baldur's Gate follows the player character as he/she sets out from his warm, cozy lifestyle in the fortress-library of Candlekeep and takes off into the unforgiving land of Faerun. This comes on the heels of your foster father Gorion's urgent warnings. You are sent out into the world fresh for adventure, and there are many twists and turns along the way including one at the start, which will hook you for the rest of the game. Even in Candlekeep things aren't what they seem and without spoiling anything I can tell you that the story blossoms as you advance. You will never feel like saying "What the hell am I actually doing here?"

The gameplay is simple and intuitive. Party navigation is a breeze, and over 15 NPC's can be recruited into your party of 6 as you progress and their unique "banter" amongst themselves really never leaves you bored with your party. Combat is simple and the weapons are fun. Character development is one of the richest ever found in an CRPG. As for all this anger about the rules of D&D and how they "suck" in a CRPG, I can safely say that you should not worry one bit if you are looking for a rich roleplaying experience. I never bothered with 2nd edition 3rd edition and all that crap, the rules are fine and everything is calculated "behind-the-scenes" for you so it never takes away from the experience. Everything is seamlessly done and for a person looking to immerse themselves in a wonderful world the rules should never come up and detract from your game. You DO NOT have to be a Dungeons of Dragons fanatic to pick up this game and enjoy adventuring. It really is quite a masterpiece by itself.

With a lot of areas to cover and hundreds of quests and mini quests (I'm not kidding) you are looking at least 30 hours of gameplay, 20 if you "powergame" and rush through. That's real value for the 10$ max you're paying.

Graphically the old game is showing its age, I must admit. The 640x480 resolution and low-bit sprites are all here, but strangely enough it did not detract from the overall experience one bit. For all you "What are you crazy, 640x480? This ain't the stone age!" people who might pass up on this game because the graphics are dated, do no despair! There is a great mod/upgrade for Baldur's Gate called BGtutu which converts the engine to the newer Baldur's Gate II engine, with dramatic effect.

There's no reason to doubt me and countless other gamers out there that consider this the Holy Grail of CRPG's, there is a reason for that. The reason is that Baldur's Gate is one of those special games that you will be proud to own and look back on it in another 20 years as the "genre-reviving","genre-breaking" masterpiece that it truly is.

There's not much left to say, except that if you are a person that is reading this review right now, in front of your computer, and searching for that different RPG, that is not just hack and slash then end your search my friend. You have found your gem and it is called Baldur's Gate. Give it a go, and when you're done and well on your way to installing it's sequel do what I did and recommend it to someone.

I'm hooked!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 21 / 24
Date: July 24, 2000
Author: Amazon User

I grew up playing Infocom's text-only adventures (anybody remember the original Zork?) and lamented that none of my friends were the least bit interested in learning how to play RPGs like AD&D. So I am thrilled that technology has finally allowed something like Baldur's Gate to fill that void in my life--with gorgeous graphics, no less.

I liked Rage of Mages, limited though it was, and I thoroughly enjoyed Ultima Online until it became overpopulated with a bunch of mindless PKs. The playability of BG just blows them away. The game came with our new PC a couple of days ago, and I haven't gotten much of anything done (y'know, like sleep) because I keep going back to the game.

Like I said, I've had a lot more experience with text-based games and MUDs, so it took me a bit to get used to the combat mode. I'm just glad it lets you pause and think through a strategy--especially when your party gets up to 6 characters. But the training in Candlekeep helps a lot, I think, and overall, the interface is quite intuitive.

Absolutely amazing and facinating!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 17 / 19
Date: June 02, 2000
Author: Amazon User

This is the best RGP I have ever played! It has so many pros that I simply connot list them all! First of all, the graphics are excellent! The landscape a breathtaking and the 3-d sound just overwhelm one's mind. The variaty of items, spells, monsters and NPCs are amazing.

The game consists of tons of quests that are optional, but worth taking. They can well affect your party's reputation, and give quite a bit of experience too.

The game's foes are anywhere from mysterious and powerful weyverns to bewitching dryads, nympths, and succubi(succubi in the expansion).

The controls, I think, are perfect. For those of you with an IQ of a bench, who can't press SPACE and then give orders to your players "GO PLAY QUAKE! " I think that the fact that you can control your characters while in pause mode makes the game play much easier. Because you can give orders with out worrying about dying in the process.

Then it perfectly copies AD&D rules and adds a realistic content. The game is not hack-and-slash but requires a bit of thinking aswell.

Magic overwhelms the game. The spells are fascinating. But it is brought to reality as much as possible. For example if a Wizard is chanting a big spell a good knock on the head breakes it. And yes, all spell-casting creatures actually "weave" or "chant" spells before casting them! No other game that I've seen ever does that.

Overall, the game is Grrrrrrreat! Fantasy and RPG fans "GO GET IT! "

Excellent Storyline and graphics!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 15 / 16
Date: November 19, 1999
Author: Amazon User

I have been playing this game since it has been available and I am hooked! I love Diablo and this game is better than Diablo. The interwoven storylines, the quests and the various characters add richness and depth to this game. The graphics are eye poppingly realistic. I recommend this game highly to anyone looking for a great role playing game

Strap on your belt pouch and get born again.

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 17 / 21
Date: February 25, 2000
Author: Amazon User

In today's CRPG world, the gaming experience of pure fantasy may be going the way of the dinosaur. You'll be hard-pressed to find an role-playing adventure tried and true to the style of those David Eddings and Terry Brooks fantasy novels that you cut your teeth on growing up. In rather self-conscientious awareness of its own hero-for-the-kingdom banality, the CRPG field has survived, much like today's rock and pop acts, by breeding with other gaming genres (Daggerfall/Diablo---Action, Warcraft/Heroes of Might and Magic---RTS), mixing in some sci-fi, cyberpunk, or dystopian elements (Final Fantasy, King's Quest, Fallout), or going for the whole "virtual world" shtick (Ultima Online, Meridian 59, Everquest). Even the paper-and-pencil AD&D system created a dizzying array of other-worldly campaign settings the original Tolkein-based dungeon-crawlin' ruleset had no real business mingling with in the first place. Well, you can't really blame the gaming companies for this, as the few straight-forward fantasy games that have been released in recent years have epitomized the mediocrity that RPG hybrids seek to avoid. I still have dismal memories of "Betrayal at Antara," and even Interplay's virginal gateway AD&D product "Descent at Undermountain" is a disaster best forgotten.

Luckily, Baldur's Gate arrives to save the CRPG AD&D franchise from the claws of history and inject some vitamins into the ailing modern vein of fantasy role-playing to boot. There is good reason that this game was universally lauded by professional gaming critics and on the top of just about everyone's RPG nomination list. Baldur's Gate resurrects the role-playing heroics and old-school antics of avenging wrongs, party camaraderie, and exploring new lands of SSI gold-box adventures of yore, while updating it for today's graphical sensibilities. Baldur's Gate is as much a celebration of the fantasy role-playing experience as one in its own right. The descriptive prose is thorough and appropriate for the medieval milieu without being hackneyed. Humor in dialogue brings a welcoming relief from the burden of playing the hero without bordering on self-parody. The story is engrossing and interconnected in a chapter system of revelations (reminiscent of Betrayal at Krondor) without being contrived. Your main protagonist, a sheltered but well-tutored young man/woman, who is no one's fool and has talent to burn, has ubiquitous appeal without being cardboard. His/her destiny awaits in your hands, as well as how you choose to shape his reputation, profession, and preferences for friends and enemies. All of this on the backdrop of a 1st-rate CRPG implementation of the 2nd Edition AD&D rules, beautiful pre-rendered backgrounds, character portraits, and a stream-lined interface for ease of use. Who would have thought it would be this much fun reprising the role of the fantasy savior and hitting the road with your motley crew of fellow do-gooders? It's all about the presentation, my friend.

The most valid criticism of Baldur's Gate from the nay-sayers (amid a plethora of inane ones) is the combat-happy nature of the game. This is a foible more of the fault, among others, of the AD&D system itself and its representation in a computer game. In particular, early TSR pen-and-paper modules were very predisposed to combat (after all, it was the experience marker of choice), and after 20 years, a major revision, and a second one the under way, the AD&D ruleset has some baggage and some imbalances to its name. This might have been a problem, had not the combat system of Baldur's Gate been so darn fun. It takes a myriad of obscure combat and initiative rules and stream-lines them in a visceral, adrenaline charged real-time combat engine, which was how combat was REALLY supposed to feel like, not bogged down in a litany of tedious die-rolling and methodical turn-taking. I never tired of my senses piqued to the war-cry of an oncoming band of humanoids, the raspy squall of a flesh-hungry ghoul, or the sing-song incantations of an enemy spell-caster preparing certain doom for my party, or the haste in which I paused the action and brooded over what action to take.

The only real criticisms I have of Baldur's Gate is the empty ending (the journey is the real reward) and some hardship starting on the right foot with your rookie character, as in survival (I recommended creating a pure or multi-classed fighter; I'm afraid you'll have to stow those fantasies of being that ubermench mage gliding through the realm in a shimmering ball of mana, I know I did). The world won't be dealt to you on a silver platter---but where's the fun in that!

Baldur's Gate is a no-brainer for the AD&D crowd. For the uninitiated, Interplay softens the transition with a user-friendly integrated tutorial at the beginning of the game and excellent documentation, basically an abridged version of the Player's Handbook. Interplay has the role-player's interest at heart; if "Fallout" didn't settle the matter, Baldur's Gate will. However, if you're a self-appointed CRPG pundit who has his OWN paradigm of what a CRPG is, and in your metaphorical solar system of the experience Neptune happens to be the center of everything, i.e. These negative reader reviews which concentrate on one aspect of gameplay that doesn't jibe with them and proceed to denounce the whole game, then chances are you'll find reason not to enjoy Baldur's Gate. However, if you accept it on its own terms, which are by no means shabby, I invite you to partake in a rarely rewarding role-playing experience, both nostalgic and novel, and richly deserving of its place as a modern CRPG classic.

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