Baldur's Gate The Baldur's Gate Series Thread

[J1M]

So guys, I wanted to play BG1 (just 1) under linux and install some mods. I have no idea how to do this. I installed the GOG version of BG 1 which created some kind of additional wine folder wih BG inside. I moved my weidu executables to a $PATH folder, but it seemingly cannot find the proper files (I'm trying 'weinstall widescreen'). I trying running 'tolower' first to make all names lowercase but it didn't work with the helpful message "Fatal error: exception Not_found".

Since the log files seem to indicate weinstall is looking inside the .wine folder, I created a symlink to GOG's BG installation there. No luck.

Any help?

Use windows.

 

[SausageInYourFace]

So guys, I wanted to play BG1 (just 1) under linux and install some mods. I have no idea how to do this. I installed the GOG version of BG 1 which created some kind of additional wine folder wih BG inside. I moved my weidu executables to a $PATH folder, but it seemingly cannot find the proper files (I'm trying 'weinstall widescreen'). I trying running 'tolower' first to make all names lowercase but it didn't work with the helpful message "Fatal error: exception Not_found".

Since the log files seem to indicate weinstall is looking inside the .wine folder, I created a symlink to GOG's BG installation there. No luck.

Any help?

I am not tech savvy and I have no idea what most of what you just said means. However, have you tried the programm PlayOnLinux? When I still had Linux I usually used that programm to install games, it has install scripts for most GoG versions and usually automatically installs additional shit that you need to have to run a certain thing. Thats what makes it so perfect for computer-morans like me (who should not try to run Linux in the first place, but thats a different story). Sometimes the scripts are old though and you still need to manually adjust certain settings. I used POL a few months ago to install the GoG version of Baldurs Gate and it worked perfectly.

 

[Baron Dupek]

Can't you somehow open these files and rip the content out instead of using actual installator?

 

[DraQ]

Use windows Play better game.

Fixed.

 

[DragoFireheart]

Fixed.

BG1 is a bad game?

 

[DraQ]

BG1 is a bad game?

A quintessentially mediocre one.

 

[DragoFireheart]

A quintessentially mediocre one.

When I think mediocre I think Skyrim or DA:O, not BG1.

 

[DraQ]

When I think mediocre I think Skyrim or DA:O, not BG1.

Luckily I haven't played DA:O and even vanilla Skyrim is in the end slightly more interesting than BG1 - at the very least it's less infuriating - you don't have to herd a bunch of suicidal lemmings there and you can actually find st6uff by looking for it rather than using your cursor as some sort of retarded divining rod.

 

[DragoFireheart]

and even vanilla Skyrim is in the end slightly more interesting than BG1

There's only a small handful of items that require extensive cursor waving.

Most everything else if it looks like a container it likely is.

 

[DraQ]

There's only a small handful of items that require extensive cursor waving.

A small handful of items that invariably gave you massive edge at given stage of the game.

Most everything else if it looks like a container it likely is.

Unless it isn't.

 

[DragoFireheart]

A small handful of items that invariably gave you massive edge at given stage of the game

The same could be said of Alchemy in Morrowind.

Unless it isn't.

That's part of the mystery and experience.

 

[DraQ]

The same could be said of Alchemy in Morrowind.

No, not the same at all.

Alchemy was an obvious example of broken mechanics or mechanics that could be exploited to the point of complete breakage.

Hidden powerful loot was an obvious example of loot someone put there for perceptive player to find. The problem wasn't the loot itself, but the fact there was no actual perception involved.

If anything, the alchemy would be comparable to animating a bunch of skeletons around a powerful enemy, ordering them to attack, then moving all party members out of visual range to force the AI to shut down - an obvious, glaring cheese.
Meanwhile the loot is mostly comparable to Morrowind's loot, except there is no way to find it other than waving your cursor around.

That's part of the mystery and experience.

Yeah, for example you enter a mysterious warehouse and see around 2 barrels that are, mysteriously, actual containers and another pierdylion that mysteriously aren't.
Because mystary and shit.

How about having some consistency instead? If one container of given type is interactive, then all containers of given type are interactive and vice-versa.
Also, a barrel should only contain typical contents you could expect from it unless there exists a reason to suspect it contains something else.

 

[DragoFireheart]

How about having some consistency instead? If one container of given type is interactive, then all containers of given type are interactive and vice-versa.
Also, a barrel should only contain typical contents you could expect from it unless there exists a reason to suspect it contains something else.

Ok fair enough, I can agree with this.

 

[DragoFireheart]

Ok I can't stand mage/sorc solo anymore I hate not being able to just attack stuff. Wild Mage is fun at least, solo sorc is insufferable. I also get OCD about all the cool equipment I can't use.

Back to the Elven Fighter/Mage solo!

 

[DraQ]

Basically, BG1 was Oblivion of its time.
Yes, it's better and less retarded than Oblivion but those were better and less retarded times so they featured a better, less retarded Oblivion.

 

[roshan]

I think it's just the codex that has managed to attract a lot of retards over the years.

 

[UglyBastard]

I recently played BGT and can kinda agree on BG1 being a bit bland.

Some aspects of the game were very nice, I liked the Iron Throne subplot, the city of Baldur's Gate, Durlag's Tower and a bunch of encounters (like the excavation). Sarevok is a cool nemesis.

But in the end most of the massive amount of maps were just empty. You explore them in the hope of finding something interesting and get disappointed over and over again. Many maps feature about one interesting encounter but you have to wade through a huge void of filler shit (trash mob combat or annoying architecture) to find it. And sometimes there isn't even something to find. Take for example the halfling village with the secret entrance to the Firewine ruins. It's a whole map with a seemingly interesting settlement that does feature no quests, no encounters, not even useful merchants, nothing. And it takes forever to explore because of the map layout.

Or Cloakwood forest. It gets slightly annoying after map XVII and further. Werewolf island is more of a chore as well (I hate it but my completionist itch forces me to do it every time).

Or the infamous mine levels. Nashkell. Cloakwood mine. I mean come on.

BG2 is so much better because it's maps are filled to the brim with interesting and fun stuff to find. You never feel like you have wasted 30 minutes of your life time after fully exploring a map.

 

[DragoFireheart]

Basically, BG1 was Oblivion of its time.
Yes, it's better and less retarded than Oblivion but those were better and less retarded times so they featured a better, less retarded Oblivion.

I think you go too far.

BG1 was bland, but it was nowhere near Oblivion bad even relatively speaking. IWD fits that bill more closely.

 

[SCO]

It does feature quests. It was where you got undead bones for mellicamp the chicken dispel thing, although that might have been 'fixed' by BGT for normal skeletons or something. i think that map may also be the one with that mercenary and the sculptor? Not sure.

 

[UglyBastard]

It does feature quests. It was where you got undead bones for mellicamp the chicken dispel thing, although that might have been 'fixed' by BGT for normal skeletons or something. i think that map may also be the one with that mercenary and the sculptor? Not sure.

Skeletons in High Hedge drop the bones.
Mercenary and sculptor are outside of Nashkel mines.

 

[DraQ]

I think you go too far.

BG1 was bland, but it was nowhere near Oblivion bad even relatively speaking. IWD fits that bill more closely.

Let's see - generic fantasyland, seemingly huge world mostly filled with repetitive generic wilderness, crappy quests with virtually no C&C, crap combat, massive amount of filler, counter-factually hailed as OMGBESTARPEEGEEEVAR!!!1 by many, arbitrary railroading (inability to enter locations despite no mechanical reason for that in BG1 - Cloakwood, scripting and essential NPCs in Oblivion).

Some aspects of the game were very nice, I liked the Iron Throne subplot, the city of Baldur's Gate, Durlag's Tower and a bunch of encounters (like the excavation). Sarevok is a cool nemesis.

Also, RPCs interactions.

But in the end most of the massive amount of maps were just empty. You explore them in the hope of finding something interesting and get disappointed over and over again. Many maps feature about one interesting encounter but you have to wade through a huge void of filler shit (trash mob combat or annoying architecture) to find it. And sometimes there isn't even something to find. Take for example the halfling village with the secret entrance to the Firewine ruins. It's a whole map with a seemingly interesting settlement that does feature no quests, no encounters, not even useful merchants, nothing. And it takes forever to explore because of the map layout.

This. And the Gullykin map at least features the village, somewhat interesting layout AND, I think, a hostile party, so it's still near the upper end of the spectrum.

Or the infamous mine levels. Nashkell. Cloakwood mine. I mean come on.

 

[hell bovine]

So, I just found the mod that lets you change any NPC's class & kit. Might give the series another try; always wanted to try a make up party with just rouges. :D

 

[UglyBastard]

I think comparing it to Oblivion goes a bit too far.

The content was not even close to the repetetiveness of oblivion gates and at least it was hand-crafted. There were also more memomarable and fun moments. Only interesting thing in Oblivion that I remember are the Dark Brotherhood quests, especially the one where you had to crash a party. The RPG system of BG is way better than Oblivion's bunnyhopping olympics or taping down the W key while sneaking in a corner.
And it did not have the worst offender of all times: The absolutely retarded level scaling that made the vanilla game unplayable even when you liked the rest of the content. Hacking away at a fucking goblin for 30 minutes is not excusable.

BG1 might not score too well on the frustration vs. fun scale, but at least I finished it several times and it had it's moments. Oblivion is just a crime against humanity and I could never bring myself to finish it.

BG1 is a stepping stone on the way to the greatness that BG2:SoA is (I believe BG2 is a truly great game) and you could see it at times. Oblivion is more of a giant turd that clogs your toilet when you try to flush it away.

 

[GarfunkeL]

So, I just found the mod that lets you change any NPC's class & kit. Might give the series another try; always wanted to try a make up party with just rouges. :D

Or you could have just created your own party in multiplayer, you know.

 

[DragoFireheart]

DraQ you really don't like BG1 do you?