MaximumPC - Baldur’s Gate Enhanced Edition is a Disappointment

Couchpotato

Part-Time News-bot
Joined
October 1, 2010
Messages
36,073
Location
Spudlandia
MaximumPC has a new editorial column that's a bit late for Baldur’s Gate Enhanced Edition.
This time, the ghostly visitor in the night is Baldur’s Gate, the game that put BioWare on the map and brought the classic D&D experience from the Gold Box age into a whole new epoch of awesome. Unfortunately, the new Baldur's Gate: Enhanced Editioncouldn’t repeat the magic that turned X-Com (one of the best PC games ever, and now almost wholly unplayable for anyone but nostalgia-sadists) into the brilliant XCOM: Enemy Unknown.

In fairness to the makers of Baldur’s Gate: Enhanced Edition, they didn’t have the deep pockets and vast resources of 2K/ Firaxis. Beamdog/Overhaul just doesn’t bring that much stick to the table. Rather than getting a reinvented Baldur’s Gate, or even a heavily

I say that with the understanding that “significantly less impressive” is relative. Baldur’s Gate is still one of the best RPGs ever. It’s also still on my shelf, and available online for about $10. Nothing in the Enhanced Edition diminishes the original game, but it doesn’t enhance it that much, either.

This is Baldur’s Gate with Baldur’s Gate II improvements, a graphics bump, a better journal, and a tedious arena mode. They say they fixed or added 400 things to this version, but pathfinding is not among them. Also, it’s buggy and crashy as all hell. You can save your money, load up the original game, install the Tutu mod and a few others, and get a fine BG experience.

The bigger problem is that Baldur’s Gate is an old-school game that just hasn’t aged all that well, and remains little more than a nostalgia act. The fussy combat and bland narrative is something for a younger, more tolerant era of computer gaming. The most bizarre part is that you can trace a straight line from the concepts of BG right through all of BioWare’s products. Dragon Age and Mass Effect are Baldur’s Gate, done better. Why would we want it done worse?
More information.
 
Joined
Oct 1, 2010
Messages
36,073
Location
Spudlandia
Blah, blah, blah. Played it again. Loved it. Shut up.
 
Joined
May 2, 2011
Messages
80
LOL I didn't play it, nor buy it, but I did notice they supported it well (read: bugfixing frequently instead of years of Skyriming) and MaximumPC should respect at least that.
 
Joined
Apr 12, 2009
Messages
23,459
The most bizarre part is that you can trace a straight line from the concepts of BG right through all of BioWare’s products. Dragon Age and Mass Effect are Baldur’s Gate, done better. Why would we want it done worse?
Them's fightin' words! It's a pretty straight line up through Neverwinter but there are some curves to get to Dragon Age (like dropping the whole D&D system). Mass Effect? No, that's not a straight line at all. It certainly still has Bioware's mark but in no way does it replace BG's line. Even if it does have a miniature giant space hamster.
 
Joined
Aug 3, 2008
Messages
8,220
Location
Kansas City
Them's fightin' words! It's a pretty straight line up through Neverwinter but there are some curves to get to Dragon Age (like dropping the whole D&D system). Mass Effect? No, that's not a straight line at all. It certainly still has Bioware's mark but in no way does it replace BG's line. Even if it does have a miniature giant space hamster.

Yeah, that statement alone makes me severely question the the article writer. I've played BG like 6 times. I couldn't bring myself to finish either Mass Effect or Dragon Age.
 
Joined
May 3, 2008
Messages
615
How is Dragon Age Baldur's Gate done better? I am still at a loss for words as to what people really expected from the enhanced edition. The developers were very clear about what they were doing and it seems almost like many critics were thinking they would get a complete rework and overhaul.

Clocknova says all that's needed to be said:

"Blah, blah, blah. Played it again. Loved it. Shut up."
 
Joined
Jul 18, 2007
Messages
491
Maximum PC is a good magazine about technology and the pc, but not because of this guy. I always skip his monthly gaming columns. He recently had one where he was saying micro transactions in games are just fine with him. What a moron.
 
Joined
Oct 2, 2009
Messages
2,236
Location
Pacific NorthWest, USA!
"Unfortunately, the new Baldur's Gate: Enhanced Editioncouldn’t [sic] repeat the magic that turned X-Com (one of the best PC games ever, and now almost wholly unplayable for anyone but nostalgia-sadists) into the brilliant XCOM: Enemy Unknown."

"The most bizarre part is that you can trace a straight line from the concepts of BG right through all of BioWare’s products. Dragon Age and Mass Effect are Baldur’s Gate, done better."

These are two of the stupidest things I've read in a while...
 
Joined
Sep 16, 2010
Messages
4,813
Yeah I don't agree with this guy at all I, I recently replayed through Balders Gate 1 and 2 with the expansions, and absolutely loved it! The combat is nothing like Mass Effect and bears no relation to it.

Dragon Age and Mass Effect are Baldur’s Gate, done better. Why would we want it done worse?

Don't diss Baldur’s Gate! :mad:

Daniel.
 
Joined
Oct 19, 2006
Messages
732
Location
England
I actually agree with this guy for the most part. This edition really didn't add anything that wasn't already done with mods and added nasty DRM (online activation) to boot. I'll still be playing my old copy of Balder's Gate long after the activation servers for this game are turned off.
 
Joined
Apr 9, 2013
Messages
87
I will be totally honest here, I agree. Hear me out!

Now you see, back when BG was new, I LOVED it. It was the long awaited rebirth of the RPG genre, which at that time was supposed to be dead. Baldurs Gate was in it's time a hallmark and remains as one of the most favourite Top 10 game EVER. And trust me, I played a LOT of games in the last 25 years.

Still. I bought the Enhanced Version, started a few hours... and I simply could not play it anymore. Walking through those giant uneventful maps, cities or villages; wading through those hordes and hordes of mobs... it just is yesterday's gaming. I can't even 100% tell you why. But for me, it is a great jewel of the past, but something I simply can't play today. One part certainly is that I am a very visual person, and BG just doesn't have much to offer for today's standard. I know other people don't care about these things, and good for you.


But for me, I am glad I supported the Enhanced Edition, because hopefully it may revive Baldurs Gate and the D&D single player RPG genre. But I realized I just can't play such games today in 2013 anymore. If a new D&D RPG series comes, it must be more like Skyrim or Dragon Age or what. Something in 3d and ego-perspective.

Buuut... thats just me. ;)
 
Joined
Aug 24, 2007
Messages
555
Location
Germany
I played BG a while ago for the first time ever and I loved it. No nostalgia involved in my case, obviously, but it's one of the best games I've ever played.

The only thing is "lacks" according to modern standards is graphics with optional 1st\3rd person view and a lot of "banter". In all other respects I feel it's better than DAO. Interesting plot, complex battles, extensive world, exciting quests. C'mon, how can you say that DAO is BG done better, if it loses to it on these accounts…
 
Joined
Jan 2, 2013
Messages
574
Location
Russia
The only disappointment is there is no Baldurs Gate 3.

I would have rather seen that versus a 15 year old redux.
 
Joined
Oct 18, 2006
Messages
1,397
Location
USA-Michigan
Please don't ever link to anything from MaximumPC again.

haha .. so true!

Dragon Age and Mass Effect are Baldur’s Gate, done better.

What he MEANT to say is that Dragon Age and Mass Effect largely rehash ideas taht Baldur’s Gate did better
 
Joined
Oct 18, 2006
Messages
14,911
After reading countless articles of people taking a shit on the games I love, this is simply another fart in the wind. RPGs are dead, whats new?
 
Joined
Aug 9, 2010
Messages
71
I was a bit disappointed in the new areas, but over all loved it. Well worth the price.
 
Joined
Jan 10, 2008
Messages
4,353
Location
Austin, TX
Back
Top Bottom