since 1. i missed it the first time around (more of a console guy) and 2. a mac version comes out sometime this month, enlighten me.  what's the big deal of BG?  is it basically ad&d 2e on the computer?  combat real time or turn-based?  

thanks in advance for your gushes and/or criticisms

eta:  currently reading the wikipedia article on the series.  and i have the two ps2 games.

so i guess it was great in the day, but not worth bothering with now, except for the grogs?  gotcha.  i'll just replay some JRPGs then :rolleyes:

The game is awesome.

It's a real-time game, though there is an autopause feature that lets it play a little more like a turnbased game.

It's point-and-click, giving commands to your up to six characters.

The system itself it pretty good but the game really shines in its story and the characters. Particularly in BG2, the interaction between your party members and each of their personal adventures are engaging and entertaining. The dungeons are, for the most part, clever and creative, though a few here and there will feel like a bit of a slog.

I played through about half of BG1. My preference is for BG2, which was a sort of... 2.5, as it came out just before 3E was released. In fact, Icewind Dale 2 was released with 3E rules.

BG2 has a whole mess of kits available and offers a bit of a darker tone with its character images and overall plot. The voice-acting, what there is of it, is generally excellent.

Like most of those older RPGs, BG does not play quick. It's a game that includes some inventory management, the cultivation of party members, and refighting some tough battles (there's a loading screen hint that proves to be very true, sometimes just a small change in tactics can make an incredibly hard battle into a breeze). As usual, save early and save often.

If you like the D&D experience of taking a first-level nobody and building him into an epic badass while rolling along on a pretty good story (and you don't mind old school PC games) then BG (and especially BG2) is a must-have, honestly.

I tried to like it, but couldnt. The game consists in a big sequence of boring and tactically shallow combats glued together by a linear storyline and static dialogues.  In fact, I wouldn't call it a RPG at all – it's a fantasy tactical combat game disguised as a RPG. There is no sight here of the open-ended world of Ultimas and Darklands, nor the dynamic tree-branching dialogues and choice-consequence environment of the Fallouts and Arcanum, nor the ingenious prose of Torment. And its weak even as a tactical combat game, since its no par at all to the real sharks of the genre (XCom/UFO, Jagged Alliance, Silent Storm, FO:Tactics, Front Mission, Valkyrie Chronicles, Advanced Wars, etc).

I would only recommend it if youre a 13 years old little girl (or a 60 years old grandma) who likes watching soap opera romances or teen emo series on TV.

It's the game that put CRPGs back on the map, with a story that rivaled the old Ultima games while using the AD&D 2e mechanics.

It's real time, sort of, because you can set it up to pause at the end of each round so you can then adjust your strategy accordingly.  It also has a "when you're dead, you're dead" aura about it, which means you'd better save before each battle.

You do have to pull a party together, and there's a long middle period where you're essentially going from region to region and leveling up so you can proceed further into the story.  That said, I enjoyed both BG1 and 2 immensely.

When BG2 came out, the big argument was which was a better game:  BG2 or Diablo 2.  The people who liked 'click and kill' preferred D2, while the 'story' people preferred BG2.  Kind of funny that Bioware and Blizzard are still locked in the same rivalry with Mass Effect 3 and Starcraft 2, and WoW and TOR.

Just pick up the original and a few mods of your choice from the net.  Pocketplane is a good place to start.  The BG series is the best crpg since Ultima 4 or Might and Magic 6.  You owe it to yourself to play it.

Quote from: JRR;581903Just pick up the original and a few mods of your choice from the net.  Pocketplane is a good place to start.  The BG series is the best crpg since Ultima 4 or Might and Magic 6.  You owe it to yourself to play it.

never got into the mods thing, probably due to my console over computer gaming history.  even now with WoW i don't use any add-ons.

looks like the BG package will be only US $20, so perhaps i'll pick it up later in the fall when i may have more free time.  i've been meaning to replay the old JRPGs i have for sega genesis & CD, as well as FF7 (the first cloud strife one?) which i never played, but find it hard to spend the time i had so freely in my youth.  if BG is fairly easy to get into, then i'd be more likely to get it.  i'm sure familiarity with 1e ad&d helps, lol

I never played Baldur's Gate either, so I might look into an older BG 1 & 2 copy. If you commute by not-car and have a Gameboy Advance or DS then you can get Phantasy Star Collection -- it's PS 1, 2, & 3 in a cartridge. Shining Force 1 is also on GBA (actually a lot of classic rpgs are on GBA...).

Quote from: Opaopajr;582028If you commute by not-car and have a Gameboy Advance or DS then you can get Phantasy Star Collection -- it's PS 1, 2, & 3 in a cartridge. Shining Force 1 is also on GBA (actually a lot of classic rpgs are on GBA...).

i may look into that anyway--while i car commute, and still own the originals, it'll be easier on my electric bill to play those on my DS, rather than power up the genesis/cd/32x monstrosity i still have.  (i also have the master system converter for 1, but may be missing cables if i have to take the 32x out of the equation).  looks like PSC is pretty cheap on ebay, too.

Afraid you'll lose your 32x cables? Hmm.

I too have my Sega Genesis with all the trimmings (except 32x). I lovingly refer to it as "Voltron." It's awesome that you can also plug in Sonic & Knuckles and then connect Sonic 2 or 3 atop that.

One of these days people need to recreate a diorama of Tikal with several Genesises and their add-ons.

Quote from: Opaopajr;582411Afraid you'll lose your 32x cables? Hmm.

I too have my Sega Genesis with all the trimmings (except 32x). I lovingly refer to it as "Voltron." It's awesome that you can also plug in Sonic & Knuckles and then connect Sonic 2 or 3 atop that.

One of these days people need to recreate a diorama of Tikal with several Genesises and their add-ons.

no, i think i lost my main genesis cable long ago, after i hooked up the 32x to it.  then again, it could be packed away somewhere, to be discovered years later .  

i'll take a pic later, but my setup is the first model genesis, 2nd model cd unit, with the 32x atop.

I believe there was an old photo of my Genesis w/ the Power Converter and a SMS cartridge and game card put it. It looked like a Mayan pyramid comb with a platform 'plank.' And then i staged two army men atop the game card, one laying the other standing, as if it was a human sacrifice, with an audience of army men at the Genesis base watching.

Photo is pretty much lost now, but helps paint that I was an eccentric kid.