Baldur's Gate

Discount Price: $29.98

Features:

• The plot line of the game involves the regions around the cities of Baldur's Gate and Amn
• These cities are involved in a plot to destabilize the entire Sword Coast and precipitate a war
• Chaos threatens to overwhelm the Sword Coast
• The state of Amn is under siege to the south, the High Moor is being overrun in the north, and the region around Baldur's Gate is in turmoil
• 5 CDs filled with prerendered backgrounds, compelling music, and gameplay

Accessories:
PC Gamer (1-year)	Games for Windows: The Official Magazine	Baldur's Gate Official Strategy Guide (Bradygames Strategy Guides)

Customer Reviews:

Baldur's Gate [Posted on 2006-06-30]
A lot of fun for RPG players. The graphics are a little dated, but that doesn't really detract from the total story of the game. In fact, story is the key point of the game and it has a lot of it, enough to keep any player busy for hours. Overall its a lot of fun, especially on older computers which can run more modern games, but with games like Baldur's Gate who needs modern games anyway...

This is an awesome game!!! [Posted on 2006-07-17]
This is a great game! It has the best plot and good graphics. You can easily play this game for hours and never get tired of it. Although the graphics cannot be compared to today's, they are still very beautiful and amazing to say the least.

Baldur's Gate is a must-own game for anyone who enjoys role-playing or fantasy games!

Revisit Time and Again [Posted on 2006-09-05]
The first time I played this, I tried to get to the end too soon and wasn't able to win the final battle. Then I went through each area and combed it carefully. There are many artifacts and items which you need to win the final battle. Rings, Tomes, etc. Not to mention you better get youself maxed in levels before you even think about it.

True to form RPG, you start low, have a mysterious occurance and you are on your way. Fun. My favorite characters are Boo and Minsk. There's even guest appearances by favorites from a couple fantasy series as well.

Best Rpg I have ever played [Posted on 2007-06-08]
Ok, I admit it. I didn't purchase this when it first came out. I looked at the screenshots, I read the reviews, but I didn't think the game was for me. I was into shooters...I couln't be bothered with these so called R-P-G's. Then the price dropped below 20...and my computer gaming was never the same. This is by far one of the best computer rpg's that i ever played. The character options were so vast...the companions were plentiful, and the weapons were totally awesome. I spent a good 60+ hours with this game, and even then, once I was finished...I started another character and played it again. No other game had that kind of power over me. If you still haven't played this game...get it now. There are even user-made upgrades that improve the graphics if you have the sequel. This is one game that should be in everyone's collection.

a start to a fantastic series [Posted on 2007-10-09]
After having first played through Knights of the Old Republic and Jade Empire, I thought to check out some of Bioware's older releases and the Baldur's Gate series seemed to be the most widely regarded. My love for RPG's usually extended toward JRPG's (Final Fantasy, Xenogears etc), as I criticized many Western efforts (with good reason mind you) with bland characters and uninteresting plots. However, upon downloading a playable demo of Baldur's Gate II, my opinion was quickly shattered. Impressed with the great voice acting, wonderfully addictive combat (combat is usually my least favorite part of RPG's), well-developed atmosphere and the promise of over a hundred hours of game play, I Immediately ordered the beast...and boy what a beast of an RPG; Hundreds of quests, characters, and an incredibly epic scope, I went on to discover the other Infinity engine games like Planescape Torment and Icewind Dale.

Playing the original Baldur's Gate game after having played through BG: Shadows of Amn and its expansion, my experience with this title was somewhat jarring. The characters aren't quite as well-developed as the sequel, and the overall package is not as well polished...however surprisingly, this did not detract too much from my enjoyment with Baldur's Gate (I havn't yet finished the game however). It's basically the same game with minor differences in game play, with only one that affected my enjoyment (going into your inventory during combat does not pause the game, so your characters can be killed while equipping items and such, a small but notable annoyance). Also, sometimes NPCs will recommend I destroy the EVIL ONE in such-and-such-town, when in fact I've already done so. A minor issue with the over all polish, but none of these issues should really keep people from playing this wonderful game (and series). If you are new to Baldur's Gate and are trying to get into the series, I recommend you start out with this title, that way when you go through Baldur's Gate II and its expansion, you are pleasantly surprised with those games' superior amount of polish; not to mention certain characters and events will be more meaningful to you.

The Bad:
- Game will not pause during combat if you go into your inventory.
- Some may be turned off by the graphics (but IMO I enjoy these 2D games' visuals more than bland, poorly done 3D engines (like Neverwinter Nights). Besides, the amount of detail is impressive...especially in the sequels.

The Good:
- Fun and addicting gameplay; deep combat and many dungeons to plunder.
- Great character-creation and many colorful companions to aid you on your quest.
- Hours upon hours of play add up to a really epic experience.
- Wonderful score (even better than BG:II's in some spots).
- Excellent usage of the D&D license, which portrays the Forgotten Realms setting very convincingly.

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