Agree with @CrevsDaak. It always pisses me off when a charmed creature or a neutral ally kills anything. Even in BG1 where you hit the XP cap no matter what you do.
As long as you strike first you get the xp. Almost certain. Immy has a wand of magic missiles which will strike fast and then the guards just help out.
You definitely need to deal the killing blow to earn the XP.
I figured it was something like that because I had gotten xp before when guards/summons helped out and even did almost all the work.
(Although that would have been 5995 years ago... and my memory only stretches back to the last time I ate pizza...)
In 1999 I made the same mistake. Although as a Necromancer my Wis score was pretty high already so no damage done... Although I realised my con was crud, so I kept travelling to the gnoll lair and using the tome of con-ness to up it. Quiting the game and starting from Candlekeep... Then I realised that past 16 has no effect for a human mage... plus I kept my xp making the whole exercise pointless...
Plus I would wade into battle using my dagger... I had high con... I was a tough guy!
Yeah, I wasn't exactly very good. I think by the time I was 6, I had gotten to Cloakwood, but that was the best I could do. At around 11 I played pretty hard and got to the Candlekeep Catacombs, but then I discovered Imoen's Find Traps skill was too low, so I got kinda stuck. (It turns out that I could have progressed onward without such a skill, looking back, but I did not know that at the time) I didn't even totally beat Baldur's Gate 1 until I was like 15, when I said, "fudge it, there's not enough EXP to go around, I'm doing a four-man party and beating this bloody game."
(Although that would have been 5995 years ago... and my memory only stretches back to the last time I ate pizza...)
In 1999 I made the same mistake. Although as a Necromancer my Wis score was pretty high already so no damage done... Although I realised my con was crud, so I kept travelling to the gnoll lair and using the tome of con-ness to up it. Quiting the game and starting from Candlekeep... Then I realised that past 16 has no effect for a human mage... plus I kept my xp making the whole exercise pointless...
Plus I would wade into battle using my dagger... I had high con... I was a tough guy!
Just got BG:EE a few days ago and I forgot to pick up Perdue's sword.... *facepalm* then I realized I had copied the note for Mirianne into my journal and threw it away.... *faceroll keyboard* Moral of the story is check your loots! If Perdue asks I'll just say I "LOST" it! :P
(Although that would have been 5995 years ago... and my memory only stretches back to the last time I ate pizza...)
In 1999 I made the same mistake. Although as a Necromancer my Wis score was pretty high already so no damage done... Although I realised my con was crud, so I kept travelling to the gnoll lair and using the tome of con-ness to up it. Quiting the game and starting from Candlekeep... Then I realised that past 16 has no effect for a human mage... plus I kept my xp making the whole exercise pointless...
Plus I would wade into battle using my dagger... I had high con... I was a tough guy!
Just got BG:EE a few days ago and I forgot to pick up Perdue's sword.... *facepalm* then I realized I had copied the note for Mirianne into my journal and threw it away.... *faceroll keyboard* Moral of the story is check your loots! If Perdue asks I'll just say I "LOST" it! :P
I envy you if this is your first time playing. I myself have only been into the saga (at least seriously) for about 6 months, and I already have almost 600 hours logged onto Steam - higher than any other game in my library by far (and I have over 250 games).
I came to BGEE from Skyrim, and I initially thought that the graphics were horrible and everything was outdated, but it eventually grew on me - now I prefer the look.
It's also worth mentioning that my first BG experience was a year or so earlier, and it was the original game (on an anthology disc bundled with other D&D games).
To keep this message on the subject, I will say now that the stupidest thing I have ever done relating to this game is not getting to it earlier. Every other game in my library now collects dust, and all my MMO accounts have long since expired.
And like I said, I have 600 hours into the first game alone, and still feel as though I have barely scratched the surface. BGEE 2 is waiting for me (I already own it, in fact), but I will probably play through the first game with several more characters before deciding which one to import for my first BGEE 2 experience.
I do not exaggerate when I tell you this:
Prepare yourself for the CRPG experience of a lifetime.
"I came to BGEE from Skyrim, and I initially thought that the graphics were horrible and everything was outdated." - alas, it's the common opinion nowadays.
So, thumbs up to you, @Stormvessel , for really tasting BG. Not many gamers today would do the same, unfortunately, especially after playing games with "better" graphics. Nice that you've changed your mind I wish more people were like you, really.
I like BG graphics and think that it is one of those things that make BG a lifetime lovestory. For me, this is one of the major pluses of the coming Pillars of Eternity that they keep isometric view and make the game look very much like BG. It's classics and classics will never die nor be old.
"I came to BGEE from Skyrim, and I initially thought that the graphics were horrible and everything was outdated." - alas, it's the common opinion nowadays.
So, thumbs up to you, @Stormvessel , for really tasting BG. Not many gamers today would do the same, unfortunately, especially after playing games with "better" graphics. Nice that you've changed your mind I wish more people were like you, really.
I like BG graphics and think that it is one of those things that make BG a lifetime lovestory. For me, this is one of the major pluses of the coming Pillars of Eternity that they keep isometric view and make the game look very much like BG. It's classics and classics will never die nor be old.
Thanks. It may be worth pointing out that since then I have reversed my opinion on the game's visuals. Graphically, it may be subpar by today's standards, but playing it really grows on you, and now I can honestly say that I wouldn't change the look of this game in the least bit. The style is fantastic. But regardless, a huge part of D&D is imagination - a game like this just doesn't require modern graphics, and the fact it doesn't require them is part of what makes it so great!
In fact, I now hope that Baldur's Gate 3 is built using the same engine with the very same graphics. Beamdog should just tighten it up and finish implementing the D&D 2.5 ruleset and that would be perfect for me.
Many modern gamers wouldn't give this game a fair shake and I think that's incredibly sad. I used to be that type of gamer - I have a custom built crossfire rig specifically for modern games, and it turned out to be a huge waste. It will be outdated long before I stop obsessing over the Baldur's Gate saga.
Modern games are all flash and no substance. Baldur's Gate is all about the substance. Yea, it delivers it in spades. It's intricate and endlessly interesting; it's fulfilling and satisfying, and is everything I ever dreamed of in a CRPG - I really dove into the saga headlong.
Graphics? ... who needs 'em? Of course graphics which are appropriate to the style of the game add much to the experience. However, those of us old enough to remember the old Infocom text-only adventures will recall that they were good games - exciting, sometimes pretty darn difficult, and usually very engaging for a great many hours of play. I still have them on the shelf, although not used much these days ... but I even played one of them only a few months ago, and it was still fun. If a game is well-designed to work without any graphics, then it can be still be a good game.
On topic: I'm sure that I made a lot of the usual noob blunders in original BG, but it was a long time ago and I don't recall all the details - nothing particularly sticks in my mind as more outstandingly stupid than the other mistakes. I do remember that I read the manual first, however, so maybe I didn't make quite so many ridiculous blunders as those who just plunged right in without reading the documentation.
I don't care at all about "new gen" graphics engines and find 3D (most of the time) distracting from the rp experience. I love BG in it's simple 2D splendor and prefer this over an uninteresting game with buffed up graphics anytime. I wouldn't want to miss the iconic portrait bar either. Most games with a strong focus on graphics tend to be kind of underwhelming in the story/immersion department. There is only so much development time and it seems it can go either to story or graphics (there are very few examples where both were great).
I made my feelings known about those "great" graphics in @bengoshi 's awesome thread about the 15th anniversary of this awesome game. Here's what I said, but I had to add one word after the time I spent here on this forum:
"My opinion, and I seem to NOT be alone in it, is that the "better graphics" of newer games tends to ruin immersion. When they try to imitate real life so precisely, the flaws become more apparent. In baldur's gate your characters look consistent with the world. in games like neverwinter nights or dragon age, your characters look silly and always have these rigid goofy expressions on their faces. Then there are these crazy camera angles that give you no way to appreciate the world your character is living in. The truth is a video game can never look as good as real life, so when they try to it just looks... weird. I much prefer games like Baldur's Gate where your characters look like figures moving along an oil painting than some of these newer games where you look like robots in a constantly spinning world of three dimensional pixels.
Sometimes less is more. "
The word I added was "not". I used to think everybody loved these 3d graphics stuff in Dragon Age and NWN, etc.
Two of my college suite-mates on year were pretty big gamers and loved Mass Effect and Dragon Age. This might surprise many people here but I'm not really that into videogames in general. The only games I play today are Baldur's Gate family games (counting IWD) and FIFA. I also used to like Mario games and Super Smash Bros (I like Nintendo) and those are the only games I've really beaten outside of the Inifinity Engine and Temple of Elemental Evil. However, since I loved Baldur's Gate I knew the background and how it was the spiritual godfather of Dragon Age and NWN and all those Bioware games that my suitemates played.
So I tell my friends, "yo you guys have heard of Baldur's Gate right?". They knew about videogames so they said "of course! very influential game". I go, "sweet wanna try it out?". Guess what they said?
They didn't want to play because the graphics were outdated!
Meanwhile I tried playing Dragon Age but I got frustrated with it. It just didn't live up to Baldur's Gate. I knew that if they tried Baldur's Gate they'd like it but they didn't want to give it a chance because they felt it was too old to be good. One of them started in Irenicus's dungeon and then quit. h wanted to start at the second game because the graphics were marginally better.
Guess what? Last month I told the one who tried it out but quit to get the Enhanced Edition. He had some time and tried it out... and now he is hooked! He is about to beat the first game and can't wait to start the second! The other suitemate heard about it and is thinking of giving it a shot so I might give him the free EE games I got on one of those Christmas thread last December. Hopefully he'll like it
Anyway, moral of the story is: I guess you can "score" a videogame based on different criteria like graphics, gameplay, interface, storyline, online compatability and whatever. But in the end only one category matters.
I see those big super-graphics games as the Michael Bay movies that can be awesome on a Memorial Day Weekend every now and then, but never measure up to classics like Casablanca or The Godfather (Baldur's Gate)
One of the first things I did when I really got into Baldur's Gate was purchase Neverwinter Nights 2 so I could play the reloaded mod. I still had "issues" with the old graphics but I wanted to enjoy the game. Needless to say, I didn't even make it to Nashkel. I eventually came to realize that nothing beats the original. I learned to accept these graphics - now I cherish them. Not to mention the fact that Neverwinter Nights 2 has a godawful interface in my opinion.
I don't care at all about "new gen" graphics engines and find 3D (most of the time) distracting from the rp experience. I love BG in it's simple 2D splendor and prefer this over an uninteresting game with buffed up graphics anytime. I wouldn't want to miss the iconic portrait bar either. Most games with a strong focus on graphics tend to be kind of underwhelming in the story/immersion department. There is only so much development time and it seems it can go either to story or graphics (there are very few examples where both were great).
This.
It isn't any more fun to play on solid gold chessboard than it is to play the game with a wooden set. Like @booinyoureyes I don't play many video games I want a game that works on my crappy laptop -- I'd never buy a computer just to be able to play a game.
Also, 2D often looks better -- I'll take the BG backgrounds over the NWN / Dragon age tiles any day.
Also, 2D often looks better -- I'll take the BG backgrounds over the NWN / Dragon age tiles any day.
This. I'm not the type to throw away a game due to bad graphics, but I do like good graphics nonetheless. I am rather fond of pre-rendered graphics; for reference, Mortal Kombat, Vectorman, Baldur's Gate. And isometric is good. It's a personal taste honestly. (Neverwinter Nights looked horrific.)
Also, 2D often looks better -- I'll take the BG backgrounds over the NWN / Dragon age tiles any day.
This. I'm not the type to throw away a game due to bad graphics, but I do like good graphics nonetheless. I am rather fond of pre-rendered graphics; for reference, Mortal Kombat, Vectorman, Baldur's Gate. And isometric is good. It's a personal taste honestly. (Neverwinter Nights looked horrific.)
Not to mention the first NWN has a god awful story compared to Baldur's Gate IMO. When I first played it I remember thinking how it was unoriginal and generic. I hear NW2 has a much better plot but I just don't like the gameplay in that one. I realize that NWN/NWN2 is probably a more authentic D&D experience based on what I hear but it seems to be missing something that makes BG feel so special.
I think my first playthrough was pretty much won using Yoshis set snare ability, cheesy as all hell to the point were I will no longer use it under any circumstances.
Re. The graphics discussion I never bought NWN when i found out it was to be 3d, years later I completed Dragon Age and was disgusted by it to be honest, 4 person party, insta-heal, force talk everyone in camp everytime the plot advances.. ughh.
Aside from the Infinity engine games i would recommend Arcanum though. (And the Fallouts obviously).
Now, NWN was the first rpg I ever played, so I might be as protective over that game as some people are of Baldur's Gate.
In terms of the first NWN game, the original campaign wasn't so good. I didn't mind it and the music is superb, but it was annoying not being able to full manage your henchman's inventory (also one henchman. You can actually get a full party if you're an arcane caster with a familiar, then summon a creature and get your henchman to summon a creature. But I guess that's more of a zoo than a party). There are things I enjoyed in the main campaign, like the Aribeth story and I found chapters 2 and 3 particularly interesting. Charwood and fighting dragons especially.
Shadows of Undrentide and Hordes of the Underdark especially are were the fun is at though. After all, NWN has one thing Baldur's Gate didn't - and that is Deekin. Honestly I'd just say he's without a doubt the best companion I've ever seen in any game. He's funny, he's useful and he sticks with you through thick and thin. Plus some of the conversations he has with Valen to me seemed reminicent of Jan and Anomen. As in small, annoying creature starts to tell overly long, far fetched stories. Big, moody humanoid threatens to remove said annoying creature's head (the difference is whereas Jan would know this and retort, Deekin would be so beautifully ignorant he was being threatened. Growing up Hordes of the Underdark might have been my most played game, so I feel there is merit. Don't get me wrong I played Baldur's Gate as well, but I had 2-3 discs missing so I couldn't play. I only really managed 1 decent playthrough with a male druid.
NWN 2 was...honestly aside from fort building I found the plot far less than the NWN 1 OC. It was too "small" in comparison, and even if you could have IIRC up to 3 other party members I can't remember liking them so much. I remember adoring Ammon but he came far too late, the little gnome bard I can't remember the name of as he gave me a Jan vibe (I love Jan and his stories sooo much. Especially the ones about Ano), and Bishop I had a girl crush on for a while. Oh and the little tiefling rogue, and Sand. But a lot just seemed really bland as characters, and the plot was too much about your character and not about the world. I'd prefer to find out about the world like in Baldur's Gate and work out my own character's story. I'd even settle for them not being special, but make my character special throughout the story.
Where NWN2 shone anyway was the best game, imo, ever released by Bioware - Mask of the Betrayer. Amazing characters, and for once Bioware actually had an extremely dark plot. If this had been the main story for NWN2, then I think the game would have been a big success. I can't fault that game at all, even if the gameplay was a bit clunky MotB is the one thing I'd recommend to people. As its flawless, interesting, and they really got the level of character interaction right.
Dragonage wise...I loved Origins, really I did. Likewise it got a bit darker (that Broodmother speech by Oghren's ex wife's lover when she was turned insane for example was chilling), the mage origin story, the Dalish forest areas and everything that happened at Ostergar. It to me felt a lot wider scale than BG or NWN, and that something was always happening. The humour was a lot better, and people like Wyrnne, Shale, Alister, Morrigan and Oghren made it all the better. And Awakening was the same - even if it was a bit short.
Basically I think this mini essay is me saying that even if the gameplay of the following Bioware d&d games after Baldur's Gate was a bit goofy and the main campaigns weren't as good, some of the expansions are/ were worth it. Hordes of the Underdark, Mask of the Betrayer, DA: Origins and Awakening offer some very interesting stories and characters from an rpg standpoint. Maybe it's because I only got to play BG once and played these more, but they're special games and experiences in their own right, for me anyway.
I couldn't get into Dragon Age at all. I tried playing it a few months ago and I kept thinking to myself, "I am playing this, when I COULD be playing BG." I may give it another shot later because I do hear it's pretty good. I did like the first Mass Effect, I liked the first KOTOR, and I absolutely LOVED Jade Empire. Granted, none of them touch Baldur's Gate but they're all solid games.
Where NWN2 shone anyway was the best game, imo, ever released by Bioware - Mask of the Betrayer. Amazing characters, and for once Bioware actually had an extremely dark plot. If this had been the main story for NWN2, then I think the game would have been a big success. I can't fault that game at all, even if the gameplay was a bit clunky MotB is the one thing I'd recommend to people. As its flawless, interesting, and they really got the level of character interaction right.
Actually, Neverwinter Nights 2 was released by Obsidian. The ones that made Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 2, Fallout New Vegas, South Park the Stick of Truth and now Pillars of Eternity.
They were also Black Isle (Feargus Urquhart, Josh Sawyer, Chris Avellone are the big names in there) that made Fallout 2, Planescape Torment, the Icewind Dale games and they published the Baldur's Gate games.
Mask of the Betrayer is basically Neverwinter Nights 2 meets Planescape Torment. And Storm of Zehir was NwN2 meeting Icewind Dale.
What people seem to miss is that the NwN games, with the exception of MotB, never tried to focus on their campaigns too much.
They are the Minecraft of RPGs. The main campaigns are not as important as the ability to make your own adventures and worlds with a toolset and play online on roleplaying servers.
Comments
"Mages have to be wise right?"
*Gives CHARNAME Mage high Wisdom stat and low Intelligence*
Knux was a pretty shitty mage.
At 5 I couldn't even spell my name properly.
(Although that would have been 5995 years ago... and my memory only stretches back to the last time I ate pizza...)
In 1999 I made the same mistake. Although as a Necromancer my Wis score was pretty high already so no damage done... Although I realised my con was crud, so I kept travelling to the gnoll lair and using the tome of con-ness to up it. Quiting the game and starting from Candlekeep... Then I realised that past 16 has no effect for a human mage... plus I kept my xp making the whole exercise pointless...
Plus I would wade into battle using my dagger... I had high con... I was a tough guy!
Baldur's gate, you say?
I was 5985 years oldish...
To @Quartz and @CrevsDaak I'm sure I appear older...
Saying that, I'm quite well preserved... Grey all over...
I came to BGEE from Skyrim, and I initially thought that the graphics were horrible and everything was outdated, but it eventually grew on me - now I prefer the look.
It's also worth mentioning that my first BG experience was a year or so earlier, and it was the original game (on an anthology disc bundled with other D&D games).
To keep this message on the subject, I will say now that the stupidest thing I have ever done relating to this game is not getting to it earlier. Every other game in my library now collects dust, and all my MMO accounts have long since expired.
And like I said, I have 600 hours into the first game alone, and still feel as though I have barely scratched the surface. BGEE 2 is waiting for me (I already own it, in fact), but I will probably play through the first game with several more characters before deciding which one to import for my first BGEE 2 experience.
I do not exaggerate when I tell you this:
Prepare yourself for the CRPG experience of a lifetime.
So, thumbs up to you, @Stormvessel , for really tasting BG. Not many gamers today would do the same, unfortunately, especially after playing games with "better" graphics. Nice that you've changed your mind
I like BG graphics and think that it is one of those things that make BG a lifetime lovestory. For me, this is one of the major pluses of the coming Pillars of Eternity that they keep isometric view and make the game look very much like BG. It's classics and classics will never die nor be old.
In fact, I now hope that Baldur's Gate 3 is built using the same engine with the very same graphics. Beamdog should just tighten it up and finish implementing the D&D 2.5 ruleset and that would be perfect for me.
Many modern gamers wouldn't give this game a fair shake and I think that's incredibly sad. I used to be that type of gamer - I have a custom built crossfire rig specifically for modern games, and it turned out to be a huge waste. It will be outdated long before I stop obsessing over the Baldur's Gate saga.
Modern games are all flash and no substance. Baldur's Gate is all about the substance. Yea, it delivers it in spades. It's intricate and endlessly interesting; it's fulfilling and satisfying, and is everything I ever dreamed of in a CRPG - I really dove into the saga headlong.
Even it's depth has depth.
On topic: I'm sure that I made a lot of the usual noob blunders in original BG, but it was a long time ago and I don't recall all the details - nothing particularly sticks in my mind as more outstandingly stupid than the other mistakes. I do remember that I read the manual first, however, so maybe I didn't make quite so many ridiculous blunders as those who just plunged right in without reading the documentation.
I don't care at all about "new gen" graphics engines and find 3D (most of the time) distracting from the rp experience. I love BG in it's simple 2D splendor and prefer this over an uninteresting game with buffed up graphics anytime. I wouldn't want to miss the iconic portrait bar either.
"My opinion, and I seem to NOT be alone in it, is that the "better graphics" of newer games tends to ruin immersion. When they try to imitate real life so precisely, the flaws become more apparent. In baldur's gate your characters look consistent with the world. in games like neverwinter nights or dragon age, your characters look silly and always have these rigid goofy expressions on their faces. Then there are these crazy camera angles that give you no way to appreciate the world your character is living in.
The truth is a video game can never look as good as real life, so when they try to it just looks... weird. I much prefer games like Baldur's Gate where your characters look like figures moving along an oil painting than some of these newer games where you look like robots in a constantly spinning world of three dimensional pixels.
Sometimes less is more. "
The word I added was "not". I used to think everybody loved these 3d graphics stuff in Dragon Age and NWN, etc.
Two of my college suite-mates on year were pretty big gamers and loved Mass Effect and Dragon Age. This might surprise many people here but I'm not really that into videogames in general. The only games I play today are Baldur's Gate family games (counting IWD) and FIFA. I also used to like Mario games and Super Smash Bros (I like Nintendo) and those are the only games I've really beaten outside of the Inifinity Engine and Temple of Elemental Evil. However, since I loved Baldur's Gate I knew the background and how it was the spiritual godfather of Dragon Age and NWN and all those Bioware games that my suitemates played.
So I tell my friends, "yo you guys have heard of Baldur's Gate right?". They knew about videogames so they said "of course! very influential game". I go, "sweet wanna try it out?". Guess what they said?
They didn't want to play because the graphics were outdated!
Meanwhile I tried playing Dragon Age but I got frustrated with it. It just didn't live up to Baldur's Gate. I knew that if they tried Baldur's Gate they'd like it but they didn't want to give it a chance because they felt it was too old to be good. One of them started in Irenicus's dungeon and then quit. h wanted to start at the second game because the graphics were marginally better.
Guess what? Last month I told the one who tried it out but quit to get the Enhanced Edition. He had some time and tried it out... and now he is hooked! He is about to beat the first game and can't wait to start the second! The other suitemate heard about it and is thinking of giving it a shot so I might give him the free EE games I got on one of those Christmas thread last December. Hopefully he'll like it
Anyway, moral of the story is: I guess you can "score" a videogame based on different criteria like graphics, gameplay, interface, storyline, online compatability and whatever. But in the end only one category matters.
Fun.
And Baldur's Gate has a lot of it!
It isn't any more fun to play on solid gold chessboard than it is to play the game with a wooden set. Like @booinyoureyes I don't play many video games I want a game that works on my crappy laptop -- I'd never buy a computer just to be able to play a game.
Also, 2D often looks better -- I'll take the BG backgrounds over the NWN / Dragon age tiles any day.
I think my first playthrough was pretty much won using Yoshis set snare ability, cheesy as all hell to the point were I will no longer use it under any circumstances.
Re. The graphics discussion I never bought NWN when i found out it was to be 3d, years later I completed Dragon Age and was disgusted by it to be honest, 4 person party, insta-heal, force talk everyone in camp everytime the plot advances.. ughh.
Aside from the Infinity engine games i would recommend Arcanum though. (And the Fallouts obviously).
In terms of the first NWN game, the original campaign wasn't so good. I didn't mind it and the music is superb, but it was annoying not being able to full manage your henchman's inventory (also one henchman. You can actually get a full party if you're an arcane caster with a familiar, then summon a creature and get your henchman to summon a creature. But I guess that's more of a zoo than a party). There are things I enjoyed in the main campaign, like the Aribeth story and I found chapters 2 and 3 particularly interesting. Charwood and fighting dragons especially.
Shadows of Undrentide and Hordes of the Underdark especially are were the fun is at though. After all, NWN has one thing Baldur's Gate didn't - and that is Deekin. Honestly I'd just say he's without a doubt the best companion I've ever seen in any game. He's funny, he's useful and he sticks with you through thick and thin. Plus some of the conversations he has with Valen to me seemed reminicent of Jan and Anomen. As in small, annoying creature starts to tell overly long, far fetched stories. Big, moody humanoid threatens to remove said annoying creature's head (the difference is whereas Jan would know this and retort, Deekin would be so beautifully ignorant he was being threatened. Growing up Hordes of the Underdark might have been my most played game, so I feel there is merit. Don't get me wrong I played Baldur's Gate as well, but I had 2-3 discs missing so I couldn't play. I only really managed 1 decent playthrough with a male druid.
NWN 2 was...honestly aside from fort building I found the plot far less than the NWN 1 OC. It was too "small" in comparison, and even if you could have IIRC up to 3 other party members I can't remember liking them so much. I remember adoring Ammon but he came far too late, the little gnome bard I can't remember the name of as he gave me a Jan vibe (I love Jan and his stories sooo much. Especially the ones about Ano), and Bishop I had a girl crush on for a while. Oh and the little tiefling rogue, and Sand. But a lot just seemed really bland as characters, and the plot was too much about your character and not about the world. I'd prefer to find out about the world like in Baldur's Gate and work out my own character's story. I'd even settle for them not being special, but make my character special throughout the story.
Where NWN2 shone anyway was the best game, imo, ever released by Bioware - Mask of the Betrayer. Amazing characters, and for once Bioware actually had an extremely dark plot. If this had been the main story for NWN2, then I think the game would have been a big success. I can't fault that game at all, even if the gameplay was a bit clunky MotB is the one thing I'd recommend to people. As its flawless, interesting, and they really got the level of character interaction right.
Dragonage wise...I loved Origins, really I did. Likewise it got a bit darker (that Broodmother speech by Oghren's ex wife's lover when she was turned insane for example was chilling), the mage origin story, the Dalish forest areas and everything that happened at Ostergar. It to me felt a lot wider scale than BG or NWN, and that something was always happening. The humour was a lot better, and people like Wyrnne, Shale, Alister, Morrigan and Oghren made it all the better. And Awakening was the same - even if it was a bit short.
Basically I think this mini essay is me saying that even if the gameplay of the following Bioware d&d games after Baldur's Gate was a bit goofy and the main campaigns weren't as good, some of the expansions are/ were worth it. Hordes of the Underdark, Mask of the Betrayer, DA: Origins and Awakening offer some very interesting stories and characters from an rpg standpoint. Maybe it's because I only got to play BG once and played these more, but they're special games and experiences in their own right, for me anyway.
Edit: Meh that was too easy...
They were also Black Isle (Feargus Urquhart, Josh Sawyer, Chris Avellone are the big names in there) that made Fallout 2, Planescape Torment, the Icewind Dale games and they published the Baldur's Gate games.
Mask of the Betrayer is basically Neverwinter Nights 2 meets Planescape Torment.
And Storm of Zehir was NwN2 meeting Icewind Dale.
What people seem to miss is that the NwN games, with the exception of MotB, never tried to focus on their campaigns too much.
They are the Minecraft of RPGs. The main campaigns are not as important as the ability to make your own adventures and worlds with a toolset and play online on roleplaying servers.