Product Description: The grand saga of a massive gaming experience awaits you in Baldur's Gate! Isometric, top-down view gives a birds eye view of the action 3D height maps for realistic travel over terrain - actually climb stairs, fall into pits, and traverse rocky areas Dynamic full color lighting effects Realistic day to night changes in the lighting of the world Rain, snow, fog, lightning, all occuring in real-time Dynamic changes in character appearance - as you change a character's weapons and armor
Amazon.com Review: Baldur's Gate is a near-perfect adaptation of the classic tabletop, role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons. Six separate races and eight core character classes, from which the player can create a completely original character, are available. The game world is well painted, and players are free to explore this wonderfully textured game environment in any way they see fit, all against the backdrop of a thoughtfully conceived and versatile plot.
You begin the game as a young orphan living with your stepfather within the safe confines of a scholarly community. It is a happy and idyllic life until your stepfather is killed and it becomes clear that you are intended to be next. You, as the young protagonist, then set out to discover just what kind of a mess you're in. During the adventure, you recruit a number of personable allies, battle foes, delve into dungeons, trek across wilderness, solve puzzles, and complete a plethora of epic quests that are seamlessly sown into the fabric of the overall plot. The story line unfolds in response to your choices to reveal your character's true identity as well as the nature and motive of your enemies.
If the Lord himself were to ask me what games he should have in his home game collection, the first two words out of my mouth would be Baldur's Gate. This 1998 Role-Playing Game of the Year is a masterpiece and the standard by which all such games will be judged for the foreseeable future. Groundbreaking 32-bit graphics, 3-D sound, multiplayer options, and a friendly real-time game engine are blended with a depth of plot in a way that redefines the genre. --Joshua B. Coombs
Pros:
Versatile and responsive plot
Entertaining character interaction
Huge game world
Friendly game engine
Cons:
Nonplayer characters exhibit little free will
Customer Reviews
Average Rating:
Rating: - Not nearly as fun as the sequel, but its fun
Very fun game. It is not as nearly as fun as Balders Gate 2, but it does great on getting you ready for part 2. Lets you in on the storyline and teaches you how to play. Baulders Gate 2 is the best game I have ever played hands down.
Rating: - a start to a fantastic series
After having first played through Knights of the Old Republic and Jade Empire, I thought to check out some of Bioware's older releases and the Baldur's Gate series seemed to be the most widely regarded. My love for RPG's usually extended toward JRPG's (Final Fantasy, Xenogears etc), as I criticized many Western efforts (with good reason mind you) with bland characters and uninteresting plots. However, upon downloading a playable demo of Baldur's Gate II, my opinion was quickly shattered. Impressed with the great voice acting, wonderfully addictive combat (combat is usually my least favorite part of RPG's), well-developed atmosphere and the promise of over a hundred hours of game play, I Immediately ordered the beast...and boy what a beast of an RPG; Hundreds of quests, characters, and an incredibly epic scope, I went on to discover the other Infinity engine games like Planescape Torment and Icewind Dale.
Playing the original Baldur's Gate game after having played through BG: Shadows of Amn and its expansion, my experience with this title was somewhat jarring. The characters aren't quite as well-developed as the sequel, and the overall package is not as well polished...however surprisingly, this did not detract too much from my enjoyment with Baldur's Gate (I havn't yet finished the game however). It's basically the same game with minor differences in game play, with only one that affected my enjoyment (going into your inventory during combat does not pause the game, so your characters can be killed while equipping items and such, a small but notable annoyance). Also, sometimes NPCs will recommend I destroy the EVIL ONE in such-and-such-town, when in fact I've already done so. A minor issue with the over all polish, but none of these issues should really keep people from playing this wonderful game (and series). If you are new to Baldur's Gate and are trying to get into the series, I recommend you start out with this title, that way when you go through Baldur's Gate II and its expansion, you are pleasantly surprised with those games' superior amount of polish; not to mention certain characters and events will be more meaningful to you.
The Bad:
- Game will not pause during combat if you go into your inventory.
- Some may be turned off by the graphics (but IMO I enjoy these 2D games' visuals more than bland, poorly done 3D engines (like Neverwinter Nights). Besides, the amount of detail is impressive...especially in the sequels.
The Good:
- Fun and addicting gameplay; deep combat and many dungeons to plunder.
- Great character-creation and many colorful companions to aid you on your quest.
- Hours upon hours of play add up to a really epic experience.
- Wonderful score (even better than BG:II's in some spots).
- Excellent usage of the D&D license, which portrays the Forgotten Realms setting very convincingly.
Rating: - Best Rpg I have ever played
Ok, I admit it. I didn't purchase this when it first came out. I looked at the screenshots, I read the reviews, but I didn't think the game was for me. I was into shooters...I couln't be bothered with these so called R-P-G's. Then the price dropped below 20...and my computer gaming was never the same. This is by far one of the best computer rpg's that i ever played. The character options were so vast...the companions were plentiful, and the weapons were totally awesome. I spent a good 60+ hours with this game, and even then, once I was finished...I started another character and played it again. No other game had that kind of power over me. If you still haven't played this game...get it now. There are even user-made upgrades that improve the graphics if you have the sequel. This is one game that should be in everyone's collection.
Rating: - Revisit Time and Again
The first time I played this, I tried to get to the end too soon and wasn't able to win the final battle. Then I went through each area and combed it carefully. There are many artifacts and items which you need to win the final battle. Rings, Tomes, etc. Not to mention you better get youself maxed in levels before you even think about it.
True to form RPG, you start low, have a mysterious occurance and you are on your way. Fun. My favorite characters are Boo and Minsk. There's even guest appearances by favorites from a couple fantasy series as well.
Rating: - This is an awesome game!!!
This is a great game! It has the best plot and good graphics. You can easily play this game for hours and never get tired of it. Although the graphics cannot be compared to today's, they are still very beautiful and amazing to say the least.
Baldur's Gate is a must-own game for anyone who enjoys role-playing or fantasy games!
- Not nearly as fun as the sequel, but its fun
- a start to a fantastic series
