Baldur's Gate

by Black Isle Studios

Product Details

• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B00002SX0L
• Media: DVD-ROM
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #47,926 in Video Games (See Top 100 in Video Games)
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes

Product Description

Amazon.com Review

Baldur's Gate is a near-perfect adaptation of the classic tabletop, role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons. Six separate races and eight core character classes, from which the player can create a completely original character, are available. The game world is well painted, and players are free to explore this wonderfully textured game environment in any way they see fit, all against the backdrop of a thoughtfully conceived and versatile plot.

You begin the game as a young orphan living with your stepfather within the safe confines of a scholarly community. It is a happy and idyllic life until your stepfather is killed and it becomes clear that you are intended to be next. You, as the young protagonist, then set out to discover just what kind of a mess you're in. During the adventure, you recruit a number of personable allies, battle foes, delve into dungeons, trek across wilderness, solve puzzles, and complete a plethora of epic quests that are seamlessly sown into the fabric of the overall plot. The story line unfolds in response to your choices to reveal your character's true identity as well as the nature and motive of your enemies.

If the Lord himself were to ask me what games he should have in his home game collection, the first two words out of my mouth would be Baldur's Gate. This 1998 Role-Playing Game of the Year is a masterpiece and the standard by which all such games will be judged for the foreseeable future. Groundbreaking 32-bit graphics, 3-D sound, multiplayer options, and a friendly real-time game engine are blended with a depth of plot in a way that redefines the genre. --Joshua B. Coombs

Pros:

• Versatile and responsive plot
• Entertaining character interaction
• Huge game world
• Friendly game engine

Cons:

• Nonplayer characters exhibit little free will

Product Description

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars DVD vs CD, January 11, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Baldur's Gate (DVD-ROM)

I bought this game and love it! While I'm not sure how fast it would have played in its CD version, my DVD player worked very quickly (plus you never have to change CDs, which can be very annoying when you change game areas). Highly recommended!

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Regarding Disc Swapping, June 22, 2006

By 

M. Liptrap (Chico, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

= Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: Baldur's Gate (DVD-ROM)

Just had to comment regarding disc swapping, you can do a custom install with any version available, and simply select all the checkboxes. You have to do this, a "full" install will still have disc-swapping.

So what benefit does the DVD version get you? Faster install, thanks to lack of disc swapping during installation and you can save space on your hard drive by leaving some data on the dvd, vs doing so on cd again has you disc swapping.

Chances are these benefits don't mean much to you, since installation is a one time thing and hard drive space just isn't at a premium anymore. It's 2.5 gigs for a "true" full install of BG1.

Anyway, absolutely wonderful games, but I can't really recommend the dvd edition unless you can get it for about the same price as the cd version.

5.0 out of 5 stars A must, December 9, 2009

By 

WingedSpirit "~WS" (CA United States) - See all my reviews

= Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: Baldur's Gate (DVD-ROM)

I think everyone who loves a good RPG game has to play this game. Even KNOWING the storyline it's riveting. With all the mod content out there to download you can revisit in numerous ways the same storyline. The twists, interactions, romance (yes romance), and subtle jokes in this game are worth seeking out. I've many of the newer games, but every so often I reinstall BG to play it again.