Did Baldur's Gate really have an impact?

[Volourn]

Sure, it had an imapct. Without BG series, BIO would likely have faded away, and half the topic onn codex would vanish and therefore codex would likely be near death!

 

[Technoviking]

BG'S BACKGROUND IS HANDDROWN BITCHEZ!

Yeah, well, I guess my delusions are the only thing that Bioware hasn't taken away from me yet. That and the conviction that somehow, someday, this will actually happen and not suck:

I can't see them making another Baldur's Gate game, seeing as how the story ended with Throne of Bhaal.


Unless you're aiming for some sort of a God of War RPG.

 

[Jim Cojones]

That and the conviction that somehow, someday, this will actually happen and not suck:

It seems it won't happen: http://the-black-hound.com/blog.

 

[GarfunkeL]

I'll re-use this thread instead of making a new one. Does anyone know the console command to spawn the Flaming Fist mercenary who chases Viconia when you first meet her? For some reason the bugger didn't spawn, leaving the drow non-recruitable. I tried searching Gibberlings3 and Spellhold but no luck

And I guess it was Swordcoast Stratagems which broke it, since it worked before and that was the only thing I changed.

 

[GarfunkeL]

Hmm, can't seem to enable the console anymore either.

 

[GarfunkeL]

Hey, gotta advertise Sword Coast Stratagems, in the vain hope that I wasn't the last person on Earth to try it out. It actually makes the game sensibly more challenging - instead of just tripling enemy HP, it gives them potions and spells but most importantly, scripts them to properly use those! Combat is now closer to KotC than the original, though, of course it's still RTwP.

Even Nashkel Mines now required careful planning and execution, since the kobold groups were bigger and few of them even had shamans. Oh the joy of getting 4 out of 6 characters put to sleep thanks to kobold shaman and its first spell. Not to mention that the melee kobolds were smart enough to leave the sleeping toons at peace and rushed my remaining two standing guys!

Plus they call for help - no more "i'll just pull the outermost monster of that group", since you'll get the whole bunch so you have to actually utilize terrain and snares just became useful. Haven't had this much fun in ages - using my rogue to backstab the nearest enemy, luring them in a hunt through a gap where I had a trap waiting, only to have them turn a corner and coming face to face with my team who could overpower the enemy before they managed to concentrate. FUCK YEAH!

Sure, there's some cheesy stuff. For example, I allowed the enemy casters to enter battles "pre-buffed", meaning that as soon as combat begins, they have a spell sequencer giving them several buffs. But it only makes the combat more tactical - since you can still take the caster out first if you achieve surprise but if you don't do that, they will have time to cast some fun spells - like sleep, fear, charm person and dominate :D And potions, man, you have to use potions. Never before have I felt the need to actually buy few potions and really, really use them, even outside boss-fights!

Or another good example - my team was closing in to this old grave, where I was expecting to meet a Ghast or two. Instead, outside were six skeleton archers - who retreated inside the grave as my melee team closed in, allowing me to only kill two of them. And when I rushed in after them, the damn skeletons were busy rushing past the ghasts, so they could support each other. End result? My ranged dudes turning into pincushions, while melee got clobbered. FUCK YEAH.

So far I've only done the first two chapters, ie Naskel Mines, plus few of the side-quests (Gnoll Strongholds and such) but first impressions are very nice! Unless it's diseased gibberlings or rabid dogs, no fight can be taken for granted. Hopefully SCS can keep up the good pace to the end. Can't wait what sort of shenanigans are waiting for me in the Bandit Camp or Baldur's Gate or Durlag's Tower.

Why couldn't Bio take lessons from modders - this is a great example how the combat in DA:O should have been Anyway, two thumbs up for DavidW for making it!

http://www.gibberlings3.net/scs/

 

[Black]

It showed that even games with little role-playing and very mediocre writing may be called bestest rpgees ever. You know, the ones that save the genre.

 

[Wise Emperor]

BG brought nice graphics to RPG. And it was very mainstream game with lots of advertising. If I recall correctly first time I heard about BG was in fall 96. Unusual for that times making so much hype 2 years before release.
Couple of years back there were only Arena, Daggerfall & Ultima 7 & 8, worth mentioning. Fallout was commercial failure. So maybe BG wasn't ground breaking (for me it was) but marketing did miracles. And everyone will remember it as RPG necromancer, despite obvious hype.

Wow my English grammar fail as always.

 

[Castanova]

It showed that even games with little LARPing and very mediocre but ultimately tangential writing may be called bestest rpgees ever.

Fixed.

 

[Acleacius]

Because good RPGs are the most difficult games to make, doom and diablo close to easiest.

 

[Quilty]

snip

That sounds seriously awesome. I'll definitely try it on my next run-through. Do you know of similar mods for BG2? I think someone once suggested Ascension, but I don't think it improves enemy AI, just makes them more powerful.

 

[GarfunkeL]

There's Sword Coast Stratagems II for BG2. Both are WeiDU-built so should be compatible with both Tutu and BGT, though I haven't tried. As far as I know, you can have both SCS2 and Ascension installed.

Yeah, first time in years that I couldn't just breeze through Nashkel Mines with a mixed lvl1/2 party. And you can forget about clearing the wilderness zones until you pack some levels.

My current party is PC F/T, Branwen, Shar-Teel, Kagain, Edwin and Garrick, split on levels 3/4 and now I'm powerful enough to start serious clearing around Nashkel. I hope that the Bandit Camps and their neighbourhoods are suitably pumped up so I'll have as much challenge as I did on the 1/2 and 2/3 levels.

 

[Grunker]

There's Sword Coast Stratagems II for BG2. Both are WeiDU-built so should be compatible with both Tutu and BGT, though I haven't tried. As far as I know, you can have both SCS2 and Ascension installed.

Yeah, first time in years that I couldn't just breeze through Nashkel Mines with a mixed lvl1/2 party. And you can forget about clearing the wilderness zones until you pack some levels.

My current party is PC F/T, Branwen, Shar-Teel, Kagain, Edwin and Garrick, split on levels 3/4 and now I'm powerful enough to start serious clearing around Nashkel. I hope that the Bandit Camps and their neighbourhoods are suitably pumped up so I'll have as much challenge as I did on the 1/2 and 2/3 levels.

As far as I recall, the BG2 version gets notably tougher as you level up, since you have to use more creative strategies. I haven't tried the BG1 one though.

 

[Paula Tormeson IV]

snip

That sounds seriously awesome. I'll definitely try it on my next run-through. Do you know of similar mods for BG2? I think someone once suggested Ascension, but I don't think it improves enemy AI, just makes them more powerful.

Doesn't Ascension "complete" the game? It was made by one of the original designers or programmers, iirc.

 

[Azrael the cat]

snip

That sounds seriously awesome. I'll definitely try it on my next run-through. Do you know of similar mods for BG2? I think someone once suggested Ascension, but I don't think it improves enemy AI, just makes them more powerful.

Doesn't Ascension "complete" the game? It was made by one of the original designers or programmers, iirc.

DO try Ascension...for all enemies prior to the last boss fight, the main way that it makes them more powerful IS by improving their AI. It gives you much smarter dragon fights in particular.

It was made by David Gaider - he was pissed that they didn't get to do ToB as a full sequel, and so he created a free mod that not only makes the boss fights tougher, but also adds some of the quests they were planning on doing, and redesigned the last couple of areas so that the end sequencing went how they had previously ensivaged it rather than 'we're running out of time...quick throw in the end boss!!!'

It makes at least one of the 'big bosses' of the game a potential ally in the last fight (in addition to your party, rather than as a member - and this individual certainly kicks some ass) if you're of good alignment, and reintroduces a character from BG2 as a potential ally in that last fight if you're evil. And the last fight in Ascension (even with the insanely powerful good-alignent-ally) is probably the hardest fight in an infinity engine game. It's nothing like the Vanilla end fight - it isn't just 'more hp and more powerful spells' but an altogether different tactical encounter.

 

[Azrael the cat]

And on topic, of COURSE BG had an impact. You can see the trend of isometric perspective, rtw/p allowing sophisticated autopausing to simulate turns, insanely thick manuals with ring bindings and many many pages of lore, 30-40+ spells, 6-character parties and huge length of gameplay, continuing right through to the present day.
.
.
Oh wait...

 

[Paula Tormeson IV]

snip

That sounds seriously awesome. I'll definitely try it on my next run-through. Do you know of similar mods for BG2? I think someone once suggested Ascension, but I don't think it improves enemy AI, just makes them more powerful.

Doesn't Ascension "complete" the game? It was made by one of the original designers or programmers, iirc.

DO try Ascension...for all enemies prior to the last boss fight, the main way that it makes them more powerful IS by improving their AI. It gives you much smarter dragon fights in particular.

It was made by David Gaider - he was pissed that they didn't get to do ToB as a full sequel, and so he created a free mod that not only makes the boss fights tougher, but also adds some of the quests they were planning on doing, and redesigned the last couple of areas so that the end sequencing went how they had previously ensivaged it rather than 'we're running out of time...quick throw in the end boss!!!'

It makes at least one of the 'big bosses' of the game a potential ally in the last fight (in addition to your party, rather than as a member - and this individual certainly kicks some ass) if you're of good alignment, and reintroduces a character from BG2 as a potential ally in that last fight if you're evil. And the last fight in Ascension (even with the insanely powerful good-alignent-ally) is probably the hardest fight in an infinity engine game. It's nothing like the Vanilla end fight - it isn't just 'more hp and more powerful spells' but an altogether different tactical encounter.

Right. I never did manage to get through that final battle.

 

[LusciousPear]

Once my startup sells, I'll pour money into some spiritual successor to PS:T which no-one will buy, but it'll feel good man.

(true)

 

[GarfunkeL]

Once my startup sells, I'll pour money into some spiritual successor to PS:T which no-one will buy, but it'll feel good man.

(true)

I'll buy it man!

Unless you do it in the same vein that BIO, ie DA:O is the "spiritual" successor to BG... :evil:

 

[Demnogonis Saastuttaja]

Because good RPGs are the most difficult games to make, doom and diablo close to easiest.

I have played plenty of good RPG's, but not a single good Diablo clone, and no Doom clone is still quite as good as the original.

 

[Malakal]

Because good RPGs are the most difficult games to make, doom and diablo close to easiest.

I have played plenty of good RPG's, but not a single good Diablo clone, and no Doom clone is still quite as good as the original.

Quite true, most diablo clones are not worthy to even be a parody. On the other hand we have some, at least, decent rpgs from time to time.

 

[Xor]

I just wish they had adjusted XP values in SCS2. I remember having to reload like 5 times to kill a group led by a mage who kept raping my party only to finally kill him and get...4000xp. He was casting 7th level spells and shit, but apparently he was worth less than the other 5 fighter thugs who would go down in a few rounds.

I got frustrated with it eventually. I mean, I like challenges, but some of the shit in SCS2 is just unfair. I don't want to have to beat every encounter by using invisibility potions to kill casters before their contingencies go off and shit like that.

 

[Ammar]

Dunno, at least Sword Coast Stratagems plays pretty much by the rules (the buffs at the starts can be seen as simulated prebuffing). All other difficulties mods cheat by using things like Forcecasts.

 

[Andhaira]

Balgurs Gate single handidly saved the western rpg genre from extinction.

 

[Sceptic]

Please ignore me.