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I think this ''EE'' is a mess.

For the first time I'm playing BG2EE (I only played the originals, the good ones for me); while the ''normal'' stuff is ok, the new companion quests and stuff are messy. Atm I did Neera quest and it was ok, simple. The voice acting is horrible but nvm. I had to follow a guide not to lose the chance to meet Wilson the bear, because Rasaad and Neera quest ''overlap'' and you can miss it. But ok...

Rasaad quest was a mess. He was unconscious in some combat because of some enemy spell, and his dialogues were bugged. Had to reload and remake some part (the last combat, I think) or I was like... ''hello? nothing to say?'' How can you make an EE and new content and fail like this? I don't get it.

Hexxat quest again... bugs. Her dialogues were messed up and had to reload 3 or 4 times... I was playing this quest by inertia, a tomb and 2 crypts or something it was. No clue, but nvm.

I completed those and now I maybe will do Dorn quest (just because I bought this damn thing and content years ago and spent the money, so I have to play it some day) But i'm afraid he will start being annoying trying to ''romance'' my male-elf PC :/ and this is so cringe. Why is this even a thing in D&D? It's enough IRL, to involve a game in these things in a pretentious and forced way... it's a nonsense.

BG was a great game in the originals, the EE's are for me a... travesty. Sorry :D
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Comments

  • WisteriasWisterias Member Posts: 184
    Ok so I started Dorn quest rn, and when I travel to the Helmite Camp and when I approach to the guards, they 'welcome' me and it leads to the dialogue and battle in the middle of the camp... but then it loops, and the 'welcome' from the guards starts again, and the battle starts again... I had to reload 3 or 4 times until this was solved. Really? :o

    I have the last update/patch.
  • Humanoid_TaifunHumanoid_Taifun Member Posts: 1,104
    If half-orcs are slapping your butt in real life, perhaps you shouldn't be wiggling your pointy ears so seductively at them.
  • WisteriasWisterias Member Posts: 184
    If half-orcs are slapping your butt in real life, perhaps you shouldn't be wiggling your pointy ears so seductively at them.

    For me this is the less important problem I see with the EE, I will end Dorn quest and kick him off the party. But the rest...
  • TrouveurTrouveur Member Posts: 974
    Wisterias wrote: »
    But i'm afraid he will start being annoying trying to ''romance'' my male-elf PC :/ and this is so cringe. Why is this even a thing in D&D? It's enough IRL, to involve a game in these things in a pretentious and forced way... it's a nonsense.
    LGBTQIA+ people deserve as much as any others to haver some romance options.
    It's a thing in real life yes, so it's a thing in fictions as well.
    How can you know it's done in a pretentious and forced way", since obviously you never played it yet ?

  • WisteriasWisterias Member Posts: 184
    Trouveur wrote: »
    LGBTQIA+...

    People are people, and they don't need all these propaganda acronyms to live 🤷🏼‍♂️. And they don't deserve anything special, in games or wherever. A gay person can play the Aerie or Anomen romance or whatever; it's roleplaying, it doesn't have to reflect your real-life tastes 🙃. Adding these things was unnecessary... wokism and nonsense.

    In a game like baldur's gate it's simply anticlimatic and cringe to me, especially with those abnormal options... a psychopathic half-orc and a repulsive vampire. I avoid romances in this game anyway, so not a big deal.

    I completed Dorn quest. Beautiful helm and not so bad areas, but it was way too easy...

    The only "new" quest that was a little difficult to me was Hexxat crypts and not much.

    I knoe they have more quests in ToB...
  • WisteriasWisterias Member Posts: 184
    In my opinion "less is more", and I guess I will return to the Original Saga after this campaign...
  • atcDaveatcDave Member Posts: 2,723
    Personally I’m always offended by any “Evil” NPCs. So I don’t take them. Easy solution to an easy problem.
    There’s a mod that makes it very easy to just remove any or all EE NPCs from the game.

    I think broadly speaking I’m not a huge fan of Beamdog writing, a few significant exceptions. But their technical merits are outstanding. Fast, stable, better looking, ease of use features I would never choose to play without. I’ll never go back to the originals.
  • TrouveurTrouveur Member Posts: 974
    Wisterias wrote: »
    Trouveur wrote: »
    LGBTQIA+...

    People are people, and they don't need all these propaganda acronyms to live 🤷🏼‍♂️
    It's not "propaganda", it's just how theses peoples call themselves.
    And they don't deserve anything special, in games or wherever.
    They don't ask anything "special", just the same things as the straight people.
    A gay person can play the Aerie or Anomen romance or whatever
    Same as you can play the Dorn romance as a guy, seems like it doesn't please you...
    Adding these things was unnecessary... wokism and nonsense.
    Don't talk for people concerned, don't be insulting please. Non sense is what YOU are saying. Wokism is just being tolerant, you would be a better person trying to do so.
    In a game like baldur's gate it's simply anticlimatic and cringe to me
    It isn't. Gay people also exist in D&D.


  • WisteriasWisterias Member Posts: 184
    atcDave wrote: »
    Personally I’m always offended by any “Evil” NPCs. So I don’t take them. Easy solution to an easy problem.
    There’s a mod that makes it very easy to just remove any or all EE NPCs from the game.

    I think broadly speaking I’m not a huge fan of Beamdog writing, a few significant exceptions. But their technical merits are outstanding. Fast, stable, better looking, ease of use features I would never choose to play without. I’ll never go back to the originals.

    Well as I said I wanted to play the content I paid for, at least 🙃

    I had more important bugs and problems with the EE's than with the Originals, as I said, especially with the new content 🤷🏻‍♂️

    And well for me BG1, the original, was the best looking game, so...
  • WisteriasWisterias Member Posts: 184
    Trouveur wrote: »
    Wisterias wrote: »
    Trouveur wrote: »
    LGBTQIA+...

    People are people, and they don't need all these propaganda acronyms to live 🤷🏼‍♂️
    It's not "propaganda", it's just how theses peoples call themselves.
    And they don't deserve anything special, in games or wherever.
    They don't ask anything "special", just the same things as the straight people.
    A gay person can play the Aerie or Anomen romance or whatever
    Same as you can play the Dorn romance as a guy, seems like it doesn't please you...
    Adding these things was unnecessary... wokism and nonsense.
    Don't talk for people concerned, don't be insulting please. Non sense is what YOU are saying. Wokism is just being tolerant, you would be a better person trying to do so.
    In a game like baldur's gate it's simply anticlimatic and cringe to me
    It isn't. Gay people also exist in D&D.


    D&D people doesn't exist 🙃. The thing is they added those romance options with that goal, to be inclusive; this is pretentious from start. Not to mention, if someone feels excluded for not being able to hook up with a murderous half-orc or a vampire in a videogame... I would be worried.

    Tolerance already existed before being monopolized by a movement like Wokism; it's nothing more than a political/electoral tool (in decline). And yes, that whole acronym mess is a total nonsense.

    P.S., I'm not straight 🤷🏻‍♂️.
  • GarrusN7GarrusN7 Member, Mobile Tester Posts: 157
    Wisterias wrote: »
    Trouveur wrote: »
    Wisterias wrote: »
    Trouveur wrote: »
    LGBTQIA+...

    People are people, and they don't need all these propaganda acronyms to live 🤷🏼‍♂️
    It's not "propaganda", it's just how theses peoples call themselves.
    And they don't deserve anything special, in games or wherever.
    They don't ask anything "special", just the same things as the straight people.
    A gay person can play the Aerie or Anomen romance or whatever
    Same as you can play the Dorn romance as a guy, seems like it doesn't please you...
    Adding these things was unnecessary... wokism and nonsense.
    Don't talk for people concerned, don't be insulting please. Non sense is what YOU are saying. Wokism is just being tolerant, you would be a better person trying to do so.
    In a game like baldur's gate it's simply anticlimatic and cringe to me
    It isn't. Gay people also exist in D&D.


    D&D people doesn't exist 🙃. The thing is they added those romance options with that goal, to be inclusive; this is pretentious from start. Not to mention, if someone feels excluded for not being able to hook up with a murderous half-orc or a vampire in a videogame... I would be worried.

    Tolerance already existed before being monopolized by a movement like Wokism; it's nothing more than a political/electoral tool (in decline). And yes, that whole acronym mess is a total nonsense.

    P.S., I'm not straight 🤷🏻‍♂️.

    Glad to see someone not be blinded by the wokism bullshit and having actual self respect. The movement got hijacked and now everything needs representation that it's nigh insulting. Kind of wish people stopped with the whole "underrepresentation" excuse. It's straight up bogus.
    Main reason I decline to buy dragonspear. I still remember that preachy character and frankly no plans to buy the expansion even if this was changed.
  • trinittrinit Member Posts: 710
    I just dont get it, so the only acceptable form of roleplaying for gay people is to roleplay a straight romance? straight person having an option to roleplay a gay romance is somehow woke, nonsense and propaganda.

    chill out man, having more options is good. but if you insist on putting politics everywhere and being offended by everything thats your right as well.
  • jasteyjastey Member Posts: 2,873
    GarrusN7 wrote: »
    Main reason I decline to buy dragonspear. I still remember that preachy character and frankly no plans to buy the expansion even if this was changed.
    There was never a "preachy character". You fell victim to an online troll flame war. Play the game and make your own opinion.
  • atcDaveatcDave Member Posts: 2,723
    @jastey I mostly agree. I do think some of the writing is clumsy and heavy handed. But its not anything central to the story, and can be easily avoided by those who wish to. But there's no doubt, much of the mood and style feels more modern. And that is not to the game's credit for many of us (2E players!) who prefer a more classic style of game.
    I would also mention *your* mods do wonders for some of the most serious flaws in the original game. They increase the player's ability to provide input and claim credit for their actions at certain key points. I would never run without them now.

    Ultimately I think the good I enjoy outweighs the things I dislike. And that's always how D&D is. The only way to have a game world, setting and characters exactly to your choosing is play a PnP game with your own buddies. The strength of the CRPG is you can game when your buddies are less available, or no one has time to design their own adventure. But you do have be willing to navigate the ideas of DMs (writers) you might not have otherwise chosen to game with. But if you keep an open mind on assessing things, the good and the bad of it, you might find something you like quite a bit!
  • FredNFredN Member Posts: 674
    > if you insist on putting politics everywhere and being offended by everything thats your right as well.<
    True enough, but he doesn't have the right to inflict his toxic political views on us. Keep your nonsensical blithering about "woke" to yourself.
  • jasteyjastey Member Posts: 2,873
    @atcDave thank you for the kind words.
  • ChiricoChirico Member Posts: 16
    edited September 20
    I'm a straight cisgender male, and I play only non-evil parties. Last time I played Siege of Dragonspear, I imported a half-elf male PC from BG: EE and romanced both Corwin and Glint. I also did Mizhena's quest, which I saw is entirely optional. I didn't find any cause to get bent out of shape in any of the game, at least not on the non-evil path. As of this writing, I'm finishing BG:EE with a similar protagonist and looking forward to SoD and BGII:EE again after that.

    Trouveur, atcDave, trinit, FredN, and jastey have put it better in this thread than I could. Bravo.
  • WisteriasWisterias Member Posts: 184
    GarrusN7 wrote: »

    Glad to see someone not be blinded by the wokism bullshit and having actual self respect. The movement got hijacked and now everything needs representation that it's nigh insulting. Kind of wish people stopped with the whole "underrepresentation" excuse. It's straight up bogus.
    Main reason I decline to buy dragonspear. I still remember that preachy character and frankly no plans to buy the expansion even if this was changed.

    Yes... I don't understand this obsession with needing to "feel represented" for such things, even at times when it simply doesn't fit well with the atmosphere of a game. For me, Baldur's Gate is played in a kind of "medieval" setting (if it was our world), and I want that feeling, not bisexual half-orcs, lesbian vampires or trans someones popping out of nowhere 🙃.

    I'd find it more interesting if they'd added that kind of content to a game like Planescape.

  • WisteriasWisterias Member Posts: 184
    trinit wrote: »
    I just dont get it, so the only acceptable form of roleplaying for gay people is to roleplay a straight romance? straight person having an option to roleplay a gay romance is somehow woke, nonsense and propaganda.

    chill out man, having more options is good. but if you insist on putting politics everywhere and being offended by everything thats your right as well.

    When the options are as absurd as Dorn and Hexxat, no 🙃.
  • atcDaveatcDave Member Posts: 2,723
    @Wisterias I actually agree exactly about this specific point. It’s not what I’m interested in. I’m a history nerd, a fan of mythology, and Tolkien. That’s what drew me to gaming and it’s what I enjoy. As I said above, I like a more “classic” style of setting and play.

    But honestly, I think this is all making too big a thing of it. It is really easy to ignore what are some pretty minor aspects of the game and instead focus on the things it does well. For EE specifically that means a lot of technical refinements, the fastest smoothest gameplay ever for these games. And there is a lot of good action in the new material too, battles against groups of orcs/goblins/giants/trolls etc with the opponents smarter and more tactically astute than previously. And the best graphics seen yet for the series.
    BTW, we’re now 9 years past the release of SoD. And there are now user developed mods that have the same fast/smooth gameplay and gorgeous graphics. With more classic themes, like “Throne of the Mad God” that takes you to an ancient Dwarven ruin on the scale of Durlag’s Tower or “Loretakers”, a smaller two level dungeon full of wererats (and others) for BG1.

    This is a Golden Age for the IE games. And outstanding. new mod content stands on the shoulders of the modernized game engine presented by Beamdog.
  • trinittrinit Member Posts: 710
    Bisexual half-orc is somehow out of place in a setting that has magic, time stops, gods walking the earth, monsters, teleportation etc? This is not a medieval setting, it's high fantasy with medieval elements. Look, i get if you dont like Dorn and Hexxat, and I think they do leave a lot to be desired in a narrative sense, but that's about it. Let's stop playing culture wars and have constuctive convos instead.
  • WisteriasWisterias Member Posts: 184
    atcDave wrote: »
    @Wisterias I actually agree exactly about this specific point. It’s not what I’m interested in. I’m a history nerd, a fan of mythology, and Tolkien. That’s what drew me to gaming and it’s what I enjoy. As I said above, I like a more “classic” style of setting and play.

    But honestly, I think this is all making too big a thing of it. It is really easy to ignore what are some pretty minor aspects of the game and instead focus on the things it does well. For EE specifically that means a lot of technical refinements, the fastest smoothest gameplay ever for these games. And there is a lot of good action in the new material too, battles against groups of orcs/goblins/giants/trolls etc with the opponents smarter and more tactically astute than previously. And the best graphics seen yet for the series.
    BTW, we’re now 9 years past the release of SoD. And there are now user developed mods that have the same fast/smooth gameplay and gorgeous graphics. With more classic themes, like “Throne of the Mad God” that takes you to an ancient Dwarven ruin on the scale of Durlag’s Tower or “Loretakers”, a smaller two level dungeon full of wererats (and others) for BG1.

    This is a Golden Age for the IE games. And outstanding. new mod content stands on the shoulders of the modernized game engine presented by Beamdog.

    There are lot of mods that are nearly as good as the EE's "new" content... But I prefer to play the games with no mods tbh. I even prefer the Original Saga as I said before. I even feel that Originals were harder. Im playing Insane and I feel that it's being so easy atm...

    LoB is another thing that is pretty depressing. I like HOF in IWD2 and IWD1 EE, and Black Pits... but for BG its meh... Specially in BG1EE, starting a game at lvl 1 in LOB is like... Zzzz...
  • jasteyjastey Member Posts: 2,873
    edited September 21
    Wisterias wrote: »
    I don't understand this obsession with needing to "feel represented" for such things
    Here is my take: any "cis" straight person thinking this understands it quite well, actually, because why would it rub them/us the wrong way so much.

    This is not necessarily addressed at you (didn't re-read the whole thread so I don't know what exactly was said), but I think it is hilarious to tell someone that they should be content to roleplay a romance that does not represent their RL preferences while on the same time lamenting that there is romances in the game that do not represent oneself's. Duh?

  • WisteriasWisterias Member Posts: 184
    The thing is, they've added things to a game that feel artificial simply for the sake of inclusion, and the result was mediocre.

    I add these new characters to the party, complete their quests, and then kick them out. Same with Rasaad and Neera (because they're useless).

    Anyway, although I played the original romances in the past, I'm not interested in them at all right now. If I were the Child of Bhaal, I'd be too busy to waste my time with the nonsenses of Aerie, Anomen, Viconia, or that annoying Jaheira.
  • atcDaveatcDave Member Posts: 2,723
    Huh. I can’t imagine a life worth living if you don’t spend the time to love friends, family And find a little romance. Almost any story is better with a romance included. Exceptions are few. Of course sometimes the exceptions are important. But even “Schindler’s List” was better for having a little romance involved (Schindler and his wife). Was it GK Chesterton made the comment (after World War One) “We don’t fight for what’s ahead of us, but for what’s behind.” I say Amen!
    I did play RPGs long before a romance was a staple (1970s?), but I find the experience vastly more satisfying with one included.
  • DinoDinDinoDin Member Posts: 1,659
    I think arguing that if the writing or whatever of diverse characters is mediocre, that's somehow a sin. I dunno, a lot of the content of the base game is mediocre in parts, especially the writing. So, it just strikes as an odd complaint. Also, pretty much all the sexual diversity in the game is side content that can be easily ignored. Reject any EE companion's initial advances and you're fine. Don't go down a dialogue tree with one SoD NPC. And ... that's it. That's the entirety of the lgbt content in the whole saga.

    It's a peculiar thing to be fixated on. It would be akin to complaining over and over again that BG1 sucks because of the Firewine dungeon. It's blowing something way out of proportion.
  • GraionDilachGraionDilach Member Posts: 607
    Wisterias wrote: »
    [...]For me, Baldur's Gate is played in a kind of "medieval" setting (if it was our world), and I want that feeling, not bisexual half-orcs, lesbian vampires or trans someones popping out of nowhere 🙃.

    I'd find it more interesting if they'd added that kind of content to a game like Planescape.

    Forgotten Realms was never a "medieval" setting in this regard. (Calling it D&D is disingenous anyway - the setting is called Forgotten Realms. I do acknowledge that with all the multiverse propagation and mixing Spelljammer, Eberron, Feywild, the rewritten Barovia all together lately by Hasbro/Wizards makes it really hard to separate the settings these days, I mean BG3 literally starts with a Spelljammer intro before settling into FR and I've met with people who thought the Raven Queen was also part of FR despite it originating from the Points of Light setting) This setting was created by Ed Greenwood in the '80s and was always portrayed with sexual freedom. I even got some quotes from him regarding this.
    Yes, males participate in almost all rituals, as lay worshippers (as Zandilar quite correctly pointed out). This includes the High Hunt, the Run, and the Circle of Song. Yes, there are rituals that males are excluded from, AS MALES (such as almost all of the longer, more passionate dances). However, increasingly males openly plead with Eilistraeen priestesses to be magically shapechanged so as to take part in such rituals, and the priestesses (if they have the means to do so), oblige them (sometimes the change is brief and temporary, fading out as the ritual ends, and sometimes it lasts for days or much longer, while the shapechanged being undertakes a service for the clergy).

    The Making of Mage, 1994.
    "Ed quote: [[Roedele Thornmantle, knighted by Azoun for her services to the Crown (some have cattily referred to these as "personal services," but they seem to center around alley-fighting in rebellious Arabel, not anything romantic with the Purple Dragon), uses as her arms a circular white unicorn, head to the sinister, on a circular field of dark green bordered with white flames, and is a CG hf W9 who dwells in Suzail with her two lovers, the War Wizards Abrult Morglam (CG hm W6, darkly handsome, short, whittling wooden caricatures and dragons is his constant hobby) and Jakanna Bruen (NG hf W7, short-tempered, energetic, tanned, loves to climb trees and play pranks); the three are inseparable. Roedele's known for a polite public manner that displays a very dry humour. [I don't think TSR was ready to show the world two bisexual ladies in 1986].]] Not just bisexual, but a true triad if the two women are both bisexual... A full on polyamorous relationship. So I can see even more reason why they might not have appeared in print. Hard enough to get people to accept sexualities other than heterosexual, let alone true polyamory. Though I suppose if it was somehow presented as the two women being Abrult's wives it might have been marginally more acceptable to some, since polygamy has a long history... Particularly in the judeo-christian faith (though it has fallen out of favour in recent times... there are still some Mormons who practice polygamy, so I understand - not sure if there are any Jewish or Muslim sects that still practice it)."

    [[I have heard that there are, but yes, I agree that it developed into a true triad, and that such a thing would have been verboten in TSR novels at the time, except as a very 'hidden and inexplicit, in the background, buddy movie' sort of way. I tend to be so matter-of-fact about such relationships that I'm often surprised, even after all this time, when editors gasp and say, "We can't include THAT!" about various matters. After all, I work in a library in a town where two wrinkled and very 'proper' ladies in their eighties, unmarried and living together, can openly stand in the most public spot in the town library, as I, about a foot away from them, check out the library books they've chosen, and angrily tell a third lady that they've just driven all the way to Toronto and back, and their favourite shop in which to buy dildoes has closed down and gone! The general local attitude is "Live and let live" and "None of my business what X and Y do, so long as it don't scare the horses," but local attitudes in other locales around the world can, of course, be VERY different.]]

    This is from a collection of Ed Greenwood's Q&A segments which were collected on the Candlekeep site @ http://www.candlekeep.com/library/articles/sse/sse_101112-06.htm with the particular segment from 2006. Candlekeep probably has other comments in various places pointing this out which predate the New Tens.
  • WisteriasWisterias Member Posts: 184
    DinoDin wrote: »
    I think arguing that if the writing or whatever of diverse characters is mediocre, that's somehow a sin. I dunno, a lot of the content of the base game is mediocre in parts, especially the writing. So, it just strikes as an odd complaint. Also, pretty much all the sexual diversity in the game is side content that can be easily ignored. Reject any EE companion's initial advances and you're fine. Don't go down a dialogue tree with one SoD NPC. And ... that's it. That's the entirety of the lgbt content in the whole saga.

    It's a peculiar thing to be fixated on. It would be akin to complaining over and over again that BG1 sucks because of the Firewine dungeon. It's blowing something way out of proportion.

    I don't know what's wrong about Firewine dungeon?
  • WisteriasWisterias Member Posts: 184
    atcDave wrote: »
    Huh. I can’t imagine a life worth living if you don’t spend the time to love friends, family And find a little romance. Almost any story is better with a romance included. Exceptions are few. Of course sometimes the exceptions are important. But even “Schindler’s List” was better for having a little romance involved (Schindler and his wife). Was it GK Chesterton made the comment (after World War One) “We don’t fight for what’s ahead of us, but for what’s behind.” I say Amen!
    I did play RPGs long before a romance was a staple (1970s?), but I find the experience vastly more satisfying with one included.

    Well as I said I would have no time for that while fighting Aec'Letecs, Demogorgons, Firfraags, Amelyssans and stuff 😝.

  • TrouveurTrouveur Member Posts: 974
    Wisterias wrote: »

    Yes... I don't understand this obsession with needing to "feel represented" for such things,
    Unsurprisingly, privileged peoples aren't even aware they are privileged.
    If you lived in a world where 90% of the peoples were LGBT, you will be the first wanting to be a little represented too as a straight guy.
    even at times when it simply doesn't fit well with the atmosphere of a game.
    It fits it very well actually.
    For me, Baldur's Gate is played in a kind of "medieval" setting (if it was our world), and I want that feeling, not bisexual half-orcs, lesbian vampires or trans someones popping out of nowhere 🙃.
    There were also bisexual and lesbian peoples in medieval times of our world you know... And also people feeling to be more akin to another gender, even if the word trans was not used back then.

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