Baldur's Gate 2 = The Beatles
The Sims = Britney Spears
If you are reinstalling it I believe there is a user made mod if you want to play it with the 3E rules. You would need a copy of IWD2.
Of course, there is a mod to play BG1 and 2 in BG2.
it's certianly the best squad based fantasy combat simulator ever made! I mean come on, the first time a lich cast time stop tell me you weren't in awe.
This thread reminds me of that old Far Side cartoon with the three guys sitting in a room by themselves... the caption read "The Didn't Like Dances With Wolves Club". If you didn't like BG2, fair enough... just understand you are in the extreme minority. The game is consistently the #1 ranked CRPG on just about every "best of" list for good reason, it's an amazing accomplishment in computer gaming design.
That's a great summary of my BG 2 frustrations. In my case both of Bioware's initial assumptions were very much mistaken and broke continuity with my BG 1 game. Personally I'd sooner run a sword through Jar Jar Minsc, Jaheria and Jan Jansen than spend five nano-seconds in their odious company. In anycase I'd already killed them in the previous game.
It's a problem with character-driven RPGs in general. Satisfying intra-party interaction relies on highly subjective concepts such as emotional resonance or sense of humour. With fixed NPCs there's no practical way of pleasing everyone. However it could work if the player was allowed to generate NPC personalities at start-up.
No, that'd be Temple Of Elemental Evil, or even the IWD games. BG2 was a rock/paper/scissors game when it came to any real application of tactics. Melee, while powerful, was very simple in application, as was ranged combat. Anything tactical came down to spell use, which always involved removing protections and whatnot.
ToEE and IWD made better use of all class abilities in combat. And no, I think the first time a lich came after me I was annoyed. Probably because I found him in the *wall of a bloody tavern* of all places.
TOEE was a buggy mess. Sure the mod community fixed it, but you can't compare it to any of the five infinity engine games. I didn't find the combat better than in BG2 or IWD at all. The realtime with pause was revolutionary, and except for the hardcore RPGer or AD&D guy the games don't compare in the least. TOEE was a commercial and critical failure, it's hardcore fan base notwithstanding.
Um... hardly the point. Gallifrey's response was to your claim that BG2 was "certianly the best squad based fantasy combat simulator ever made!" And I agree with him: ToEE kicks any infinity engine game's ass in this category.
ToEE wasn't really that well balanced either. Once you have a couple of weapons fully enchanted every battle is pretty much a cake walk. ToEE certainly had one of the best combat systems ever though.
I don't dare ask what = Paris H!!
Um... hardly the point. Gallifrey's response was to your claim that BG2 was "certianly the best squad based fantasy combat simulator ever made!" And I agree with him: ToEE kicks any infinity engine game's ass in this category.
No, that'd be Temple Of Elemental Evil, or even the IWD games. BG2 was a rock/paper/scissors game when it came to any real application of tactics. Melee, while powerful, was very simple in application, as was ranged combat. Anything tactical came down to spell use, which always involved removing protections and whatnot.
ToEE and IWD made better use of all class abilities in combat. And no, I think the first time a lich came after me I was annoyed. Probably because I found him in the *wall of a bloody tavern* of all places.
Well, the thing with that cartoon was that Larson was poking fun at the tendency of people to follow the popular herd so to speak
Wow, TOEE?? I liked that game, but it paled in comparison to any of the IE games. I just couldn't stand the fact that the entire game took place in a single dungeon, and a very generic one at that. It was also one of the buggiest games I've ever played when it was first released.
Hmmm, BG2 was rock/paper/scissors, but IWD was not? Having played all the IE games, I certainly don't remember it that way, especially if you're talking about the first IWD. The melee was identical to the BG games, but there weren't as many spells in IWD. The spell casting was also a lot more tactical in BG2 with all the protection and counter spells. IWD in comparison, almost always came down to casting an area of effect spell against a mob, and then sending in fighters to mop up.
Yes, but sometimes people are following because it's actually that good.