Baldur's Gate

[ladyofastolat]

I've just started playing Baldur's Gate 2 again, for the first time in about four years. It's my all-time favourite computer game, and I must have played it through to the end at least 3 or 4 times. I'm playing as a mage this time, and want to try a party that's almost entirely casters. This will be an interesting change, since I usually play a paladin (though I did once play through as a monk - pathetic in the early stages of the game; ridiculously overpowered in the latter half of it. I soloed him through whole battles.)

Everything is coming flooding back - though I do sometimes default to Guild Wars controls, and get surprised when they don't work. The main surprise is how hard parts of the game are. In Guild Wars, you regenerate health all the time, so one minute after a hard fight, you're entirely well again. In BG, which uses D&D rules, I'm having to eke out every healing spell and potion. In GW, there is no limit on how many times you can use the same spell, but in BG I have an altogether too finite supply. In Neverwinter Nights, you can "sleep" in an instant, and heal completely. In BG, you can get interrupted in your sleep, and, besides, 8 hours pass. I like to role-play it enough that I only sleep at night, rather than sleeping every five minutes of game time, just to get my spells back. I'm limping through dungeons with no spells left, and hardly any health.... and I love it!

And the music...! And the words...! It's like revisiting old friends to hear that opening music, to hear the sound effects of levelling up, of clicking on buttons. And all those old, familiar phrases: "Get me out of this hell hole!"... "No-one crosses the shadow thieves and lives." And, of course, the squeak of Boo, the miniature giant space hamster...

Comments

[yellowrocket.livejournal.com]

"Go for the eyes, Boo! Go for the eyes!"

[philmophlegm.livejournal.com]

"Hamsters and rangers everywhere, rejoice!"

[philmophlegm.livejournal.com]

Minsc - best...computer game...NPC...EVER!

[greenwoodside.livejournal.com]

It's an incredible, sprawling, wonderful achievement. And it's funny! That's never mentioned enough, and humour is a rare trait in many computer games.

Supplying the mandatory Minsc quotation:

Minsc will lead with blade and boot! Boo will take care of the details.

[ladyofastolat.livejournal.com]

I think my favourite funny bit is when you meet a bunch of low level adventurers in a high level dungeon. It's hilarious! One day I really must play evil, since I've never heard Korgan's dialogues, which I've heard are very funny. (I think it's one of the flaws of the game that it really isn't set up for playing evil.)

I'd been feeling urges to replay it for a few months, but talking about it with you the other week was what prompted me to actually start playing it.

("Evil, meet my sword. Sword, meet evil!")

[greenwoodside.livejournal.com]

I don't think I can pick a favourite funny part. There's so many!

I've never played evil, and while I think evil alignment sits rather uneasily in the main quest, there are supposed to be certain subplots (in particular the Trademeet/ druids one) that allow for a pretty high level of nastiness. The trouble with playing evil - in pretty much all alignment based computer games - is that mostly is tends to come down to motiveless malignity. Korgan is very funny - mostly not my kind of funny, however. Though he has some great moments, especially in ToB. Even of the humorous evil characters, though, I prefer Edwin.

[ladyofastolat.livejournal.com]

I think the game really doesn't work if you're evil. Nearly all the sub-quests involve helping someone. The only way to role-play it evil is to rationalise, "By helping this person, I'm getting loot and good will, which will make it easier for me to do evil elsewhere." Plus, being evil automatically leads to a low reputation and all the shop-keepers give you bad prices. I think you should be able to be SO evil that everyone's scared of you, and you actually get better prices.

Not that I can ever bring myself to do evil things. I just can't do it. And, being a lawful good paladin, I never let anyone evil anywhere near my party. It doesn't feel right. I'm chaotic good this time, so I'm preparing myself for a bit more moral flexibility to my actions.

[greenwoodside.livejournal.com]

I will happily travel with the Ebil characters in my party, but my PCs are generally well-meaning types. I think role-playing a character of evil alignment is probably easier if you think of him as being quietly selfish rather than a raving psycho like BG1 Sarevok. Though that's rather theoretical, since I've never tried. I know that the Trademeet quest gave the PC the chance to poison the druid grove, and the Windspear hills one the chance to betray the ousted landowner. But, yes, the evil side of things was lacking.

In a heroic fantasy kind of RPG, I think the 'evil' options will always be a bit weak, simply because the genre is geared towards a protagonist who's, well, heroic. Even if they're heroic in the sulking-in-his-tent mode of Achilles. Apparently, 'evil' will work differently in the new (unfortunately still in development)PC RPG from Bioware. On the message boards, they've been talking about the problems of playing an evil character in the BG series and, consequently, how they'll be making adjustments for Dragon Age. I'm getting far too excited about Dragon Age, especially considering that the release date is at least a year away, perhaps two or three.

Anyway, enjoy your game.

[ladyofastolat.livejournal.com]

There's a new game? I guess I should be reading my Bioware email newsletters, rather than deleting them unread...

Re: <b>Go For The Eyes, Boo!</b>

[greenwoodside.livejournal.com]

Yep - Dragon Age. They're billing it as the spiritual successor to the BG series. No idea if that's true or not yet, since it's eons away from release. I'm just hoping for a strong single-player.

Re: <b>Go For The Eyes, Boo!</b>

[philmophlegm.livejournal.com]

Big article on it in this month's Edge magazine. Looks really, really good. I've never quite got over the disappointment of Neverwinter Nights.

Not party-based, not fantasy, but another really good RPG full of plot and characters and humour is Fallout. I recommend it. And it has one of the best endings of any game.

[evilmissbecky.livejournal.com]

The harder they hit, the harder they fall!

Ah, Minsc.

I miss BG2. I miss playing computer games, period.

[ladyofastolat.livejournal.com]

"Butt-kicking for goodness!"

There is a BG console game, but sadly it's but a pale shadow of the computer game, so I can't recommend it as a substitute, I'm afraid :-(

I have, of course, installed the Sola mod, and will be romancing in that direction ;-)

[evilmissbecky.livejournal.com]

Icon love!

And I still live for the day when someone does a Valygar romance mod. *g*

[ladyofastolat.livejournal.com]

I didn't often play with Valygar, though I really ought to, since he's interesting. I'll try and fit him in my party this time... but I do want to have a party almost entirely of mages and clerics (or half clerics): Me, Aerie, Imoen (or Jan), Anomen, and... um... um... I don't know. I will probably need at least one fighter, though.

<b>Go For The Eyes, Boo!</b>

[chelemby.livejournal.com]

I love rpgs. I am not fond of most crpgs. Why? No decent story!

Then there is BG2 -- I mean, if you can't get behind getting part of your soul back, what can motivate you? Irenicus is such a marvelous villain, Minsc & Boo are so adorabely weird, and Jan is ... well ... turninp-crazed.

Yep, best crpg I ever ran across. Have fun, again! :-)

Re: <b>Go For The Eyes, Boo!</b>

[ladyofastolat.livejournal.com]

Have you played Planescape: Torment? That is almost entirely story. Whole hours go by without you fighting a single battle.

Actually, I have to admit that it's so story-focused that I found it rather daunting and hard to warm to. Your alignment, skills and abilities are entirely based on the things you say and do, so every word you say can have far-reaching consequences for the game - closing the door to certain NPCs joining you, stopping you learning key facts etc. It's hard work!

Re: <b>Go For The Eyes, Boo!</b>

[chelemby.livejournal.com]

I'll have to give this one a look-see -- certainly I have heard good things about it. Thanks for the suggestion! :-)

I was very disappointed with Neverwinter Nights, simply because the "game" was all about the play engine. The story was pretty much yawn-worthy, sadly.

Re: <b>Go For The Eyes, Boo!</b>

[greenwoodside.livejournal.com]

Yep. They put so much energy into the multiplayer that the singleplayer suffered terribly. People have assured me that the expansion packs are better, but I was so disappointed in NWN that I couldn't face buying them.

Re: <b>Go For The Eyes, Boo!</b>

[ladyofastolat.livejournal.com]

king_pellinor played through NWN and all its expansions enthusiastically, but I found it rather boring. I did get half way through the first expansion, and it was indeed better than the original game, but then it crashed horribly. By the time I managed to fix it, I'd already moved onto Fable on the Xbox, so didn't bother carrying on.

I have played some very good mods multiplayer, though. Still, I greatly prefer BG, since I love the tactical side of the battles - micro-managing 6 people, etc.