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Baldur’s Gate II
is almost a mythical gaming experience. The story is so well
thought out, the characters so well defined, the gameplay so
smooth, the monsters so deadly that it would be near impossible
to improve this game. Playing a game like Baldur’s Gate II shows
why the best games have always been, and will always be on a pc
and not a console.
Baldur’s Gate II is an epic quest game in the truest sense of
the word. However, the quest is not to regain a lost artifact,
but rather to win back your own soul, which has been stolen by
a powerful wizard. This quest will lead you through a fantastic
journey involving a prison, an underground empire of evil elves,
a pirate island, graveyard tombs and crypts, countless dungeons,
an undersea kingdom, a wizards asylum, a elf city, fallen ruins,
a vampire stronghold, and finally to hell itself. Each area is
unique, and has breathtaking graphics.
Baldur’s Gate II
is a role-playing game, and allows for one main character
(yourself) and 5 support characters, that are also |
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under
your control. When creating your own character, values are
assigned (from 1 – 18) for attributes such as strength,
dexterity, intelligence, wisdom, constitution and charisma.
Obviously, a fighter character would want to have a high
strength and dexterity while a mage character would want
a high wisdom and intelligence. Over the course of the game,
a few magic items may be found to improve on the initial scores.
Also, when picking out your main character, you chose the “type”
of character: ranger, warrior, mage, bard, cleric, thief, or
paladin. Finally, you choose the “alignment” of you character
that are variations of good, neutral or evil. The alignment
of the main character is vital to how the quest plays out.
A number of actions are not allowable by characters of certain
alignments. for example, a character of “chaotic evil” alignment
will never agree to help solve the murder and flaying of
innocent peons. This murder mystery is a sub-quest in Baldur’s Gate II.
As for your band of merry men (and women) choose wisely,
young adventurer. The 5 additional characters in your group
generally need to be of the same alignment as the main character,
and, more importantly need to fill out different skill sets.
A well-rounded party should contain about 3 fighters / archers,
one mage, one thief and one cleric.
An interesting side bar about group dynamics is that romance is
possible between the main character and other members of the group.
The female npc’s (non-playing characters) will prompt the main
character through dialogue, and depending on your responses,
you can have a nice fling with an elf chick or other female npc’s.
Of course, like any romance, there is a downside: she gets pretty
pissed off if you let her die and then resurrect her.
Gameplay is based on the bioware/black isle infinity engine, with
the perspective being from 3rd person / over the shoulder.
All controls are done via the mouse, and the interface is supremely
logical, where even people unfamiliar with rpg’s will become
comfortable playing within a few hours.
Now onto the really good part: weapons, magic spells, treasure and
killing stuff! First and foremost, Baldur's Gate II is a role-playing
game, not a killing game, so killing everything that moves is not
only going to affect the alignment of a character, it is going to
end the game darn quick, as no one will talk to you. Some quests
can be solved with conversations and bartering, though this is not
to say you should sit down and have a nice chat with a dungeon litch
either. There are plenty of times to get out your biggest sword,
best spells, toughest armor and go in swinging from the heels.
Combat is based on the advanced dungeon and dragons rule set, and
if anyone remembers the 20-sided dice from your geeky childhood, the
rules still apply. All creatures, from humans, to dragons to mice,
have an “armor class rating from 10 to –25. a “10” armor class
would be akin to a ripe pumpkin, and a –25 would be like the hide
of a red dragon.
An armor class can be improved by getting better armor, though not
all character classes can use all armors. Different types of armor
include leather armor, chain mail, plate mail, elven mail, etc.
Better armor can also be made from the hides of a slain dragon by
an old dwarf smithy, for a price. magical armor can be found
throughout the game, mostly located on the bodies of your slain
enemies.
Weapon selection ranges from 7 types of swords, war hammers, spears,
flails, 4 types of bows, staffs, halberds, maces, slings, daggers,
axes, clubs, and more. Each character, when designed, chooses a
weapon type to be proficient in, and will get an attack bonus when
using that type of weapon. Conversely, a negative attack bonus is
applied when a character uses a weapon he/she is not proficient with.
As a character advances in levels / experience, additional
proficiencies are earned. As with the armor, better weapons can be
found in the treasure troves of old castles or dungeons, dead enemies,
stolen from an armory, etc.
With weapon in hand, and armor on back, time to rid the world of evil!
And there is plenty of evil in Baldur's Gate II. Fare tougher, nastier
and meaner and more abundant that in the original Baldur's Gate.
Standout bad guys include: dragons (black, red & shadow), beholders
(weird floating eye creatures), demon litches, illithid (walking brains
who cast a mind-melting spell), rakshasa (animal evil wizards) and drow
[evil] elves.
Beating these monsters takes more than just a sharp sword and strong arm.
To beat these higher-level monsters, a group effort is needed: the mage
can soften up an opponent with a few fireball spells, have the cleric
lower the defense of the creature, have the thief backstab the opponent,
then send in the fighters to mop up. Any damage taken can be healed
through a spell or potion.
There are over 200 spells for the mage / cleric to choose from. That’s
right – 200! spells of increasing power can be learned as a mage /
cleric advances in experience, ranging from the utterly useless
“color spry” to the jaw-dropping “stop time”, “summon demon”,
“power word: kill”, “meteor storm” “finger of death” and “black blade
of disaster”. Finishing the game without a powerful mage is next to
impossible. Casting these spells and seeing a roomful of vampires
perish in an instant or killing a pack of drow elf warriors with a
meteor storm is a huge video game rush. A great tactic i use is to
summon a pit fiend (from hell of course), send him into a room full
enemies, wait a minute, then open the door to see the often grisly results.
What really sets Baldur's Gate II apart from the flotsam and jetsam
of other pc games on the market is the depth and breadth of the story.
It is as involving, interesting and rewarding as a well-written novel.
Every plot twist is logical, every destination has a purpose (sometimes
not instantly revealed), and every character has a role, which all
leads to a heroic tale that is unveiled before your eyes. The story
takes place over 7 chapters; with each chapter having a specific goal
to meet in order to advance to the next chapter.
The story in Baldur's Gate II is a continuation of Baldur's Gate I.
However, if you have not played Baldur's Gate I, there is a great
cinematic opening sequence in Baldur's Gate II that will outline the
whole story.
Be forewarned: Baldur's Gate II is a very in-depth game (4 cd’s) that
takes a commitment to play through. It took me 3 solid months to finish.
But for those serious gamers who want a game where no detail was left
unfinished, a novel-quality story, terrific gameplay, flawless execution,
amazing environments and an unsurpassed overall gaming experience,
Baldur's Gate II is one of the finest games (computer or video) ever made.
sliceboy Rating:
5 out of 5 Planets
Note: As I have
finished this game, and it is honestly quite difficult, please contact
me (sliceboy) in the planet42 forums with any questions concerning the
play / puzzles of Baldur's Gate II.
Talk about
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