Icewind Dale: Enhanced Edition
I hesitated honestly to recommend it, but Beamdog has been doing bugfixes still in 2020-2021 (!), so that certainly deserves respect and appreciation as such! (Beamdog is the company responsible for the Enhanced Edition. The original was developed by Black Isle Studios [Fallout 1-2, Planescape].)
Though it looks like Baldur’s Gate 1 and 2 (same engine, though not the same designers), the design and story are very different. I highly recommend playing BG1 and 2 in priority. IWD is much more linear (though I like the ambiance), with very little choices, and the AD&D rules used in BG1 and BG2 were butchered a bit in IWD. Although the rules are very similar, many of the character statistics have changed. The game balance (difficulty) is sometimes very odd in IWD. Many creatures can hit -15 AC easily (beyond rolling natural 20 which are always automatic hits in all those games). In terms of being linear, it is more of a dungeon crawl, from point A to point B, and so it is not a region to explore in an uncertain order à la BG2 or Fallout. And, really, sometimes your party is crawling forward under waves of creatures to slay.
– Real player with 155.9 hrs in game
Having never played neither D&D or an Infinity engine game before, I was pleasantly surprised by just how much value was put on the table in Icewind Dale: EE, not just as a videogame, but also as an introductory of sorts to D&D for new players.
Right of the bat you’re given the option to create a party of six (though you can choose to roll with a smaller party, or even solo the whole game) with a ludicrous amount of customization at your fingertips. For those new to the whole thing such as myself at the time, the options available might seem too overwhelming at first with all the different races, classes, weapon proficiencies, etc. Needless to say I’d spent the first few hours just to setup my party. This is a good thing.
– Real player with 129.7 hrs in game
Baldur’s Gate II: Enhanced Edition
This is Baldur’s Gate 2. You wouldn’t need something else to say.
But 2.0 update came out.
It did bring some improvements with it. Some spells and abilities were tweaked, a new class was added, some bugs fixed. Changes were made into a save system - now there are 4 slots for quicksaves. Cloudsaves and achievements were enabled. Off-hand weapons became equippable with launchers and two-handers, preventing constant jumping into inventory. Further zooming is enabled. That’s a good thing.
Some of the graphics was changed. Outlines were added for sprites, for instance. This gave the game a cartoonish look, turning them off replaced thick lines with thin ones thus retaining cartoon style.
– Real player with 325.8 hrs in game
Read More: Best Dungeons & Dragons Story Rich Games.
Baldur’s Gate II is the best role-playing game ever made.
It is everything that so-called RPGs of more recent times have forgotten: not defined by skill trees, vapid dialogue, time-wasting errands or how big the world is, but by its unparalleled depth, insane replay value through class variety and actual choice and consequence throughout the world.
“Ah, the child of Bhaal has awoken."
Awakening to a cold cell deep beneath the city of Athkatla, far to the south in the nation of Amn, you find yourself in over your head once again. It seems that no matter where the Bhaalspawn goes, fate and the latent power in your blood has a way of catching up in the end. After escaping, your path is set to figure out just what brought you into contact with this “Irenicus” you keep hearing whispers of… and what exactly the powers that be have in store for you.
– Real player with 225.9 hrs in game
Neverwinter Nights: Enhanced Edition
Can’t express enough, nor can I make this a full review as it would take far too long, how amazing this game is. Still survives more than 18 years after launch through the Enhanced Edition and I’ve been playing since that launch. Roleplaying online for over 15 years, as well. It continues to get amazing improvements as it goes along, and I’m excited to see how much more it can bring.
– Real player with 7840.3 hrs in game
Read More: Best Dungeons & Dragons Multiplayer Games.
You know what you could be playing instead of a MMO?
Neverwinter Nights: Enhanced Edition.
– Real player with 965.0 hrs in game
Baldur’s Gate: Enhanced Edition
Baldur’s Gate is truly a masterpiece. Despite it’s beauty, tactical depth and great story, the game does not take itself too seriously. This cannot be said of many other leading RPG titles, which I soon begin to find rather corny. If you like RPGs and have not played Baldur’s Gate, then this is an absolute must, you do not even need to waste your time reading this review but of course you are welcome to. If you have played the original BG and are curious about Beamdog’s boob job, I share with you my opinion.
– Real player with 425.6 hrs in game
Classics are often thought to be timeless for future generations to enjoy, but the same cannot be said for Baldur’s Gate—and it’s not because CRPGs are uncommon. To go blind into BG in 2016 is practically impossible because how modern expectations are at odds with the brutal accessibility of ’90s computer games.
Baldur’s Gate, simply put, is an sarcophagus; it is a coffin of a bygone time of design philosophies and of late ’90s player expectations, immersed in the counter-culture of D&D and of fantasy-fiction that is written in its code like hieroglyphics to modern eyes. The game’s reverence is both a nostalgic call-back as well as an appreciation of BG’s systems as a traditional role-playing experience.
– Real player with 203.9 hrs in game
Planescape: Torment: Enhanced Edition
What an experience! I recommend it to anyone who likes crpgs but hates combat.
– Real player with 149.9 hrs in game
Planescape Torment has a great story. The atmosphere of the game is really cool, and the soundtrack is really nice. The soundtrack for the city of Curst is my favorite. It is an old rpg, and a lot of the game is centered around dialogue options. I recommend it if you have the time to play a slower paced rpg. If you play it stat up Wisdom, Charisma, and Intelligence for expanded dialogue. It is not my favorite classic rpg in terms of combat and game play, but I’m glad I took the time to beat it and experience this classic. Great game that doesn’t just feed you the story, you have to pay attention and piece it together as you go or you might just miss the deeper meaning. What can change the nature of a man?
– Real player with 111.6 hrs in game
Deadsiege
this one is in need of Speed…..havent played very long yet but, it is in need of some speed. looks good. so far, so good for early access. havent had any tech problems with it and, havent found a bug yet. just slow, thats my only problem so far. worth a look but, i would wait for a few more patches/updates. see what happens. will amend as we go
been a while, still needs a lot of work. still slow, i understand that items boost speed but wow is this slow going. also, whats up with not being able to start a mage ? you are stuck with sword and bow. the skelly’s lvl up fast. now dodge until you put points into it. the troll is still a grind. way to slow.
– Real player with 9.8 hrs in game
early look at game.
Great graphics. Looks like planned for LONG term play.
Bad.
Absolutly NO information given. NONE!!
movement is low, aiming is slow and blatently off. the first quest is definatly going to use all your gold and potions and even then you have to be lucky. dont bother tryign to be a mage as you cannot until you get to mid game. and to survie to mid game you have to focus vitality defence and physical. if you kite something, it runs back and heals so kiting not working.
Overall: not a good showing so far. I will play some more to see if it improves, but so far not impressed with the plot thought.
– Real player with 9.2 hrs in game