Dude, BG is an extremely ancient game that predates Windows multi-user support, and as such you will have no end of problems trying to run it on modern operating systems (for example, it will try to store save games in C/program files where users don't have write access, triggering compatibility file nonsense - which you will have realised when you noticed that you have to run ToB as admin to get past copy protection and your saves are nowhere to be found).
Unless you are a masochist then paying $20 to make the game run on modern operating systems is a very good deal.
@ambrennan, FYI the original games work very well on modern operating systems (for example, I have Windows 7 64 bit and my current laptop is only 2 years old). Of course, you must avoid installing them in Program Files (mine are in C:\GOG Games).
If your priority is to make good use of the combat bonus, you should pick a racial enemy that appears often in the game and is rather dangerous. Vampires, beholders, golems, and mind flayers probably fit that category best (although there are two Ranger NPCs in the game who already have vampires and golems as their racial enemies, so you might not want to choose those). Another good idea is to pick your racial enemy according to the backstory of your character. Maybe you image that your cleric/ranger experienced a severe conflict with a certain kind of creature in the past. Customizing your character based on your ideas generally makes the game even more fun and immersive.
I chose vampires because I've had problems with them before. I've played BG1 but not Sword Coast and I didn't want to export my character because he was a dull fighter. Is there any good mods I should be aware of? Thanks for the welcome.
So, why aren't the portraits and voicesets from the enhanced BG1 carried over to enhanced BG2? My character now has no face and sounds different.
I know I can fix this, but the point is I shouldn't have to. I just shelled out money for a few NPCs and an upscaling of the UI? Things that are available as mods for free?
This question has been asked twice here and flatly ignored. It's more than a little suspicious: why aren't these features in BG2:EE? Paying 25 dollars for a couple extra NPCs and an upscaled UI is excessive, I have to agree. So why didn't they at least also include the rest of the new features introduced in the first game?
I'm reposting/asking this again because people keep skimming over this. I'm holding off jumping into BG2EE until this gets patched/fixed. I want my protrait and sexy English accent back.
So, why aren't the portraits and voicesets from the enhanced BG1 carried over to enhanced BG2? My character now has no face and sounds different.
I know I can fix this, but the point is I shouldn't have to. I just shelled out money for a few NPCs and an upscaling of the UI? Things that are available as mods for free?
This question has been asked twice here and flatly ignored. It's more than a little suspicious: why aren't these features in BG2:EE? Paying 25 dollars for a couple extra NPCs and an upscaled UI is excessive, I have to agree. So why didn't they at least also include the rest of the new features introduced in the first game?
I'm reposting/asking this again because people keep skimming over this. I'm holding off jumping into BG2EE until this gets patched/fixed. I want my protrait and sexy English accent back.
I'm also curious about this. Why remove content from BG:EE to BG2:EE?
Look a lot of work went into the engine modernization, the new NPCs and new quests, and the Black Pits, but why not carry those over?
Why is it when I zoom in everything looks pixelated? It only looks HD when I am zoomed out. Is there a setting somewhere I can change or is this how it is meant to be?
Since the last post was last month I'd like to throw my noob question into the mix:
I have F/M with a katana in one hand and a flail in the right. I'm level 2 but have decent gear and I see my hits are way too low. Anyway I can only highlight one weapon at a time before I give the attack command. And the text box indicates only one hit. I'm doing this wrong and missing out on a lot of damage. How do I do this from a UI standpoint.
You might not be putting the flail in the right spot. If you see both the katana and the flail on the quick bar, then they're both being used in the main hand, you're just switching between them. You need to put the flail in the "shield" slot on the inventory screen. Your sprite and paper doll should both look like they're holding a weapon in each hand. You'll then get 1 attack with the katana and 1 with the flail. As you level up and gain proficiency, you'll gain more attacks per round with the main hand weapon, but the off hand will only add one attack per round (not counting haste effects.)
You might not be putting the flail in the right spot. If you see both the katana and the flail on the quick bar, then they're both being used in the main hand, you're just switching between them. You need to put the flail in the "shield" slot on the inventory screen. Your sprite and paper doll should both look like they're holding a weapon in each hand. You'll then get 1 attack with the katana and 1 with the flail. As you level up and gain proficiency, you'll gain more attacks per round with the main hand weapon, but the off hand will only add one attack per round (not counting haste effects.)
Thank you. I understand now. I had the flail in the correct hand but I for some reason was expecting one big hit. Not one hit with each weapon at their respective speeds. I get it now. Doh!
I would say that in my opinion, the best advice for a new player looking to start playing BG 2 EE... is to play BG EE first. Everything would make so much more sense. I remember when I first came to this franchise a few months ago, I first downloaded BG 2 Vanilla from GoG cos it was so highly rated, and was SO confused when I started the game, especially cos I chose a Sorcerer, and had no idea what spells to pick.
Going through BG 1 first allows players to slowly learn the game level by level, one spell at a time.
When I was about 14 or 15 (a time when I should have been focusing on my school exams, luckily I'm a prodigy and did well anyway) I was basically playing and replaying Baldur's Gate 2. I hadn't played the first one, and I'd been mesmerised by the cover art on the box in the game shop me and my Dad used to go to when it was time to get a new game.
I remember reading the manual in the car on the way home and it was like my nerd genes were suddenly upregulated by some unseen stimulus within my body. I remember playing the tutorial in-game and loving the challenge of wrapping my head around what all these variables were (THAC0, AC, To Hit, etc, etc) and working out what spells did and been stunned at HOW MANY there were. Then when I got stuck into the games story it just blew me away.
Was and still is my favourite game I've ever played, and the ONLY game I've played and finished more than a few times.
And yet, I haven't purchased the BG2 Enhanced edition as I was waiting to all the follow up work and patches, etc, were done.
Is this the case? Is BG2 : EE now the definitive edition? And am I safe to buy it?
Is this the case? Is BG2 : EE now the definitive edition? And am I safe to buy it?
The 2.0 patches represent a massive shake-up in terms of UI and moddability, but for BG2:EE the dust hasn't yet settled so I'd wait a bit more. And try BG:EE and BG:SoD first.
Comments
Thanks for the welcome.
Look a lot of work went into the engine modernization, the new NPCs and new quests, and the Black Pits, but why not carry those over?
I have F/M with a katana in one hand and a flail in the right. I'm level 2 but have decent gear and I see my hits are way too low. Anyway I can only highlight one weapon at a time before I give the attack command. And the text box indicates only one hit. I'm doing this wrong and missing out on a lot of damage. How do I do this from a UI standpoint.
I remember reading the manual in the car on the way home and it was like my nerd genes were suddenly upregulated by some unseen stimulus within my body. I remember playing the tutorial in-game and loving the challenge of wrapping my head around what all these variables were (THAC0, AC, To Hit, etc, etc) and working out what spells did and been stunned at HOW MANY there were. Then when I got stuck into the games story it just blew me away.
Was and still is my favourite game I've ever played, and the ONLY game I've played and finished more than a few times.
And yet, I haven't purchased the BG2 Enhanced edition as I was waiting to all the follow up work and patches, etc, were done.
Is this the case? Is BG2 : EE now the definitive edition? And am I safe to buy it?