Baldur's Gate II: one of the most beautiful and beloved of the RPGs, just like its namesake in Norse mythology.
User Rating: 8.9 | Baldur's Gate II: Shadows of Amn PC
Baldur’s Gate II: Shadows of Amn is the fruit of the collaboration between the creative minds of Bioware and the reputable label of Black Isle. The game expands upon the great roleplaying game formula devised by the Canadian developer in terms of content and graphical fidelity, all the while balancing the intricacies of the popular Forgotten Realms license and the adaptation of those elements into an enjoyable CRPG (computer roleplaying game) base. I certainly hope that I was one of the neophytes in this particular blend of CRPG genre to whom Bioware was hoping to appeal when they developed this game. I’ve never had the pleasure of being involved in any paper D&D game sessions, nor had I not even played the first instalment of the Baldur’s Gate series and its expansion. The welcoming aspect of this title starts with the rather succinct introduction of the game’s settings, what lead to the current scenario in the beginning of the game, and what are the predicaments that the protagonist in this epic would have to overcome. Bioware covered all the bases in easing the new players to the series like me feel all warm and tingly inside, and what with a comprehensive tutorial, allowed me to enjoy not all, but certainly most nuances of the RPG right from the beginning. One of those nuances is certainly the fun to be had in creating your own alter-ego. What hours I’d spent glued to the front of the monitor, keep rolling the random number generator to get as high stat numbers as possible for my first character that was, predictably, a fighter. Well, not hours, but certainly enough clicking was done to induce carpal tunnel syndrome in my right hand. My revealing of my pathological powergaming tendencies when it comes to RPG was not to alienate myself from those hardened embittered veteran players who would scoff at such foolhardy exploit (and rightfully so), but to profess that Baldur’s Gate II was one of my best powergaming roleplaying experiences ever! Not that I’ve never been humbled by this game. There were times where I just could not bear but pull my hair out of frustration such as when Kangaxx the Lich laid a smackdown on my little group of jolly men (and women) with a litany of imprisonment. And other hideous and powerful monsters that I do not recall as fondly except that they whimpered to their end with carefully placed traps and backstabbing. Baldur’s Gate II has these kinds of especial moments where the conventions of wonderfully deep D&D RPG rules shine through the relatively limited and tightly scripted CRPG gameplay. Whether or not the preference of your roleplaying will be compromised is not in the question; the whole bevy of NPCs which various traits encompass almost the entire of range of popular D&D classes. There is almost no need to be limited to any degree by the choices players would make in determining the development of the player character; it is as open to possibilities as RPGs like Fallout but in its own effective manner. This game is, in some respects, even better, since the interactions between the NPCs, which might as well be mindless drones doing nothing but your bidding as you would during the game’s pseudo turn-based combat, are one of the best scripted and endearing ever. They blurt out all of a sudden, and sometimes their interjections of emotional pleading can be out of place. However, the dialogues make the small sprites lumbering stiffly across the screen, seemingly dazed and lost more often than not thanks to the poor pathfinding system that much more real, and your roleplaying experience that much more convincing and alluring. When the NPCs do not share the same outlook on personal integrity (between lawful good and chaotic evil for example), they sometimes bicker and sparks fly, escalating into a blood feud. There are threads where romantic interests kinder, treated with a right amount of angst and as much realism as computer game designers (good ones) can muster without delving into too much melodrama. Oh the places you will go, from the commercial sprawl of Waukeen’s Promenade (not Joaquin’s Promenade) to places teeming with evil such as Underdark. The plot that weaves all these fantastical places, however, is not really more significant than what many would hope of the RPG of this grand scale. Why, you ask? Well, the game’s plot is a continuation from the first instalment of Baldur’s Gate, where the contrivances of the player character being a Bhaalspawn has already been elaborated. In Baldur’s Gate II, the novelty of that premise wears off amidst a rather befuddling storyline involving a gaggle of forgettable villains with little to no character development devoted to the main character (to which you would be more or less personally attached, especially if the character from the first instalment was imported). The worst thing that could be said of the plot, however, is that the ending that should wrap the adventure up is so underwhelming and lukewarm that it only ended up pointing to the bare and undeniable fact, that Bioware was prepping an expansion pack for the game. I was disheartened, and apparently, Bioware’s little bait of an ending did not work, at least for me; I’ve not played the Throne of Bhaal until this day, and given how much I’ve enjoyed Shadow of Amn, it is saying much about how this game should’ve done a better job of treating its conclusion more seriously and render it more respect that it deserved. Baldur’s Gate II features higher level characters than were available in the first game in the series, although the levels are capped at 20. The rather esoteric D&D levelling system and its intricacies are sometimes lost upon me, but they do not necessarily hinder the enjoyment, all the while providing a thorough option that manage all the manner of gameplay settings and can be configured outside the game, most important (to me) of which is level of difficulty. The combat is the main showcase of all this adaptation of D&D rules in action, and there are a lot of battles to be partaken. In pseudo-turn based style pioneered by Bioware and that became a cornerstone of their approach to combat for all their games thereafter (including Knights of the Republic), the combat provides a semblance of fluid action amid the wildly rolled dice action that has to be seen to be appreciated (or to understand what the heck is going on). And with perhaps the greatest contribution to the RPG gameplay mechanics since the introduction of inventory system, this evolution of a combat system includes a pause function, which makes all the difference between a hack trying to suck up to more impetuous gamers leaning toward action and a thoughtful master craftsman who cut enough compromise but still maintained the sterling integrity of the original gameplay. Baldur’s Gate II is such a game: a masterful exhibition of compromise. Who would have ever thought that such a wonderful game could be borne out of a patchwork of compromises, if only unified by the vision to deliver the most possible authentic while enjoyable D&D gaming experience? The graphics in Baldur’s Gate II represents the pinnacle of 2D hand drawn sprites in all in their painstaking glory. It is only a wonder that Bioware could have crammed this much well rendered content into the game that lasts well over 100 hours. It is also a wonder how I could put up with Neverwinter Night’s generic 3D in its cubist glory after having feasted on the intricate BG II visuals. The spell effects, which are quite beautiful while being a bit minimalist, are in part driven by 3D accelerator, and fog of war also becomes its beneficiary in becoming a bit smoother. The screen resolution is limited to 800x600, but can be locked, of course without technical support to higher resolutions. As for the sound and music, well let me tell you I have scoured the net more than one time and even resorted to P2P networks to get my hands on any music files bearing Jeremy Soule and BGII moniker. The orchestrated music becomes another organic experience and ultimately fulfilling; every epic game deserves equally epic music. Multiplayer does function, but on a limited basis. I’ve not tried it, though, and it is mentioned only because it further augments the value of this game even more than what the single player that spans four CDs can offer. There are more than a few fan mods available on the net and other custom graphic sets if you so wish to alter the character portraits to your roleplaying preferences. I think I am not the only one who hoped dearly that the license that Obsidian’s new RPG was based upon was none other than Baldur’s Gate. Of course, it was revealed later to be Neverwinter Nights 2, also based on the Forgotten Realms for sure, but I am certain that the gamers would sooner or later be longing to bask in the warm glow of eternal sunshine afforded by their experience of a place called Baldur’s Gate. The legacy runs too deep, and too wide, for its name to be only archived in the annals of CRPG while being relegated to a ‘forgotten realm’ of the golden era of PC gaming.
