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Merge both titles into 1 experience

ajwzajwz Member Posts: 4,122
in Archive (Feature Requests)
This is probably more of a discussion for after BG:EE releases, but bg2:ee is going to be released as a separate game.
In the style of the bg trilogy mod, I'd like to see for people who have purchased both games to be able to play through continuosly between bg1 and bg2, with the ultimate aim of only having to go through the character generation screen once in the entire playthrough.
Since both games should be using the same engine, I can't see any reason a player should have to import/export a character, or revisit the character creation screen, even if all they have to do there is click "ok".

Comments

  • AnduinAnduin Member Posts: 5,745
    Would love this if poss... It would have to be a visit to the capture the bhaalspawn site.... Walk out of the temple of Bhaal... They would not know what was happening, perhaps a few people asking you to leave... in fact as soon as you leave Baldur's Gate... WHAM! Then wake up in Iruninnicker's dungeon
  • mlnevesemlnevese Member, Moderator Posts: 10,214
    I really think it would be nice if they did this, as I've said many times in other thread. Also, Adventure Y could be a link adventure between BG1 & BG 2 where we learn how we were captured and how the specific group we find in Irenicus` dungeon ends up with you.
  • bigdogchrisbigdogchris Member Posts: 1,336
    edited November 2012
    Many people for asked for BGT:EE, with the two games, and I hope it happens. Hopefully the UI will be opened up enough that modeers can change it to merge both sets of content.

    My other concern is over patches. Some patches will only affect BG:EE content and some will only affect BG2:EE content. Things like rule bugs/fixes will affect both games. How are we going to be ensured that a change to one game is changed in the other?

    I think that BG and BG2 Enhanced Editions should be, from the beginning, released to be eventually combined into one product, so that when patches are released, game engine fixes and games specific fixes are different.

    If you have one engine/front end and two sets of underlying content, that may work. It would be almost like NWN where the game content will be loaded like you loaded a mod.

    I have created a simple photo to illustrate what I am talking about.

    image
    Post edited by bigdogchris on
  • MungriMungri Member Posts: 1,645
    One problem I found with this in BGT was that trap, lock, and scroll experience was heavily nerfed in BG2. They vastly reduced the EXP gain for BG1, and because it was continuous it got reduced in BG2 as well, so after that I decided to use Tutu instead and keep both games seperate.
  • AntonAnton Member, Moderator, Mobile Tester Posts: 513
    bigdogchris said:

    I think that BG and BG2 Enhanced Editions should be, from the beginning, released to be eventually combined into one product, so that when patches are released, game engine fixes and games specific fixes are different.

    This.
    Perhaps not from the beginning, but as soon as BG2EE is out it should be only 1 app. And those, who have BG1-EE should be given an option to update to BG1&2EE.
    Let's not do 3 separate apps: BG1EE, BG2EE and BG1+2EE.
    One more reason to do it - limited space on tablets. Why would we waste space by having 2 separate apps like BG1EE and BG2EE that have same files within.

    Hope that @TrentOster will consider this.

    P.S. Sorry for lame English
  • MungriMungri Member Posts: 1,645
    But how can they implement the lock / trap / scroll EXP from BG2 across 1 single game? Its far too much EXP for BG1, and if they remove it you lose loads if EXP in BG2.
  • O_BruceO_Bruce Member Posts: 2,790
    So basically asking for BGT:EE? Ok, as long I still will be able to choose if I want to merge two games or not. The reason for this is that, for example, I might be playing two games at time with different patches or mods. So I support possibility of merging two games.
  • ShinShin Member Posts: 2,344
    I wholeheartedly agree with the OP, would also like to see an official all-in-one package with seamless transition from one game/expansion to the next. Ideally with better coverage/playable sequences between BG and SoA, and at some point in the future with open-world style backwards transition as well so that you - if you feel like it - can take a break from the Bhaalspawn war in ToB and go see what's happening in Beregost.

    @Mungri There are several ways of handling this. One is already done (if yet somewhat messily) by the BGT tweak pack. The tweak pack component will upon installation reduce exp rewards, making them suitable for BG1. When you transition to BG2 you have to either uninstall that particular component, or manually alter the 2da-file that controls the exp rewards.
    A simple way of doing this is to export the original 2da file to your override directory prior to installing the mod, and copying it. Once you transition to BG2, you simply rename the copy to the original filename and let it overwrite the modified file, and exp rewards will be back to BG2 levels.

    Either way, since this is handled by values in a file, for an official release it should be perfectly doable to sort this out either by changing it to two separate files with different values depending on what pint of the game you are at; or to have the file altered when you transition.
  • bigdogchrisbigdogchris Member Posts: 1,336
    Mungri said:

    But how can they implement the lock / trap / scroll EXP from BG2 across 1 single game? Its far too much EXP for BG1, and if they remove it you lose loads if EXP in BG2.

    That may not be an 'engine' fix, it may be a game specific fix.

    Maybe the team has idea's on how to get engine fixes that affect both games, put in both games without much effort. I don't know.

  • elminsterelminster Member, Developer Posts: 16,317
    Personally I don't see the fact you have to import into BG2EE to be that big of a deal. They probably will be cleaning it up anyways to make it an easier process for tablet users.
  • ARKdeEREHARKdeEREH Member Posts: 531
    ajwz said:


    ...I can't see any reason a player should have to import/export a character, or revisit the character creation screen, even if all they have to do there is click "ok".

    Well, the option should still exist for those of us who like to play the game more than once with the same character.
  • kamuizinkamuizin Member Posts: 3,704
    Serious, if the games didn't link themself and to carry an game from BG EE to BG II EE i have to yet export the character, BG EE will be seen antecipated as a failure to me. This is the only feature that i don't give up.

    We could export the saved game itself and use Mass Effect actions/consequences structure, the saved game would be checked to see which specific choices where done so we face the consequences of them in the following game.

    Just don't repeat the past and make me import the character and i'm good (for now) with it, otherwise the old BG will finish with a better playability than BG EE.



  • ARKdeEREHARKdeEREH Member Posts: 531
    I haven't played Baldur's Gate Trilogy, so I don't know to what extent this has already been done, but I think if all the games were merged into one big one that it would make sense to be able to travel to map locations in BG1 from SoA and to SoA and BG1 locations from ToB.

    For me, this would be the biggest advantage of having the games all merged into one.
  • kamuizinkamuizin Member Posts: 3,704
    @ARKdeEREH, BGT didn't allow that, the merge of both games was made only to give consistency for the saga. After you entered BG II territory, all BG previous areas where locked to travel in.
  • ShinShin Member Posts: 2,344
    The old areas lock because there's no new content written for them, so the BG1 part of the world is stuck in the state it were in when you killed Sarevok; i.e. it wouldn't make much RP sense to go there and talk to people. Since BGT puts all the area files in the same installation though, you can use the console to go there.
  • HeinrichHeinrich Member Posts: 188
    I think it would be better if we waited until both games have reached their full potential in terms of patching bug fixes and tweaks and DLC's. Maybe afterwards both games could be released as a single massive BGT-like game as a form of a "Game of the Year" Edition. I would definitely buy that!
  • kamuizinkamuizin Member Posts: 3,704
    If they don't charge that, well it's an idea to be explored :)!
  • ARKdeEREHARKdeEREH Member Posts: 531
    Shin said:

    The old areas lock because there's no new content written for them, so the BG1 part of the world is stuck in the state it were in when you killed Sarevok; i.e. it wouldn't make much RP sense to go there and talk to people. Since BGT puts all the area files in the same installation though, you can use the console to go there.

    I was thinking in terms of being able to move on to SoA to continue with the main quest, but still being able to go back to BG1 to resolve any side quests that hadn't been completed yet. I know this has been an issue before when I'm playing ToB and I've wanted to complete a quest in SoA, or I realize that I left some important item (such as the silver pantaloons) behind in SoA and can't retrieve it without cheats.
  • kamuizinkamuizin Member Posts: 3,704
    the problem is the timeline, the events in SoA are suposed to happen after the events on Baldur's Gate.
  • ProllenProllen Member Posts: 6
    A good idea!
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