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This Icewind Dale you speak of…

It has been a really long time since I played this game, and honestly I just can’t remember much about it. I think, I may of gotten bored with a party of NPCs that had no mind of their own. Am I even remembering this correctly? I don’t think I even finished the game. Maybe I didn’t give it a fair chance. I feel like I must be missing something as so many here on this forum obviously have excellent taste in RPGs, as they love BG as well. :) Have I really been missing out? Is the story amazing? Perhaps the setting? Should I really be jumping up and down in anticipation and just don’t know it yet?

Am I the only one who didn’t get hooked the first time out?
BlackravenbooinyoureyesdunbarkaguanaStarflower2525WithinAmnesia
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Comments

  • SharGuidesMyHandSharGuidesMyHand Member Posts: 2,579
    edited September 2014
    BG was a tough (maybe impossible?) act to follow. Coming straight off the heels of BG's massive success, the main "criticism" of IWD is that it didn't have the same kinds of unique and memorable NPCs that BG had. But then again, if you try comparing any other RPG to BG, it's going to fall short IMO.

    On the flipside, there are a number of people who like IWD precisely because it doesn't have joinable NPCs, and instead allows you to create entirely your own party and form your own imagination of them. Speaking personally, while I generally prefer BG over IWD, I think it will be a nice change of pace to have the freedom to create a character and then not have to worry about RPing their personality and background.
    RavenslightBelgarathMTHBlackravenjamoecw
  • BlackravenBlackraven Member Posts: 3,486
    I agree with @Elrandir that the music, the areas and the general atmosphere are outstanding. Many people also like the challenging combat the game offers (there's a lot of that).
    In terms of exploration and of character development/interaction I feel Baldur's Gate is the more interesting game. If you don't like roleplaying various characters at the same time, there is an Icewind Dale NPC pack that may be made compatible with IWDEE. Might prevent you from getting bored. (And who knows maybe the enhanced edition will offer a number of NPCs like they did in BGEE, or maybe BGEE NPCs can be made compatible with IWDEE, as both games run in the same engine.)
    RavenslightbooinyoureyesJuliusBorisov
  • SilverstarSilverstar Member Posts: 2,207

    Ahh… Then that is why I’m remembering it as I am. Well shoot, it seems to be missing most of the things I look for. Still, the EE Edition will be a great time to give the game a second chance!

    If you still have the original you might consider giving that another look before buying the EE. The story, setting and ambience hasn't changed any and if it pleases you after a few hours of play you could pick up the EE. It's doubtful new shiny mechanics will wow you if you weren't looking for them in the first place.
    RavenslightThe_New_Romance
  • RavenslightRavenslight Member Posts: 1,609
    I will definitely be looking for this IWD NPC pack people are mentioning, to be compatible. Perhaps it will keep my PC from feeling so lonely. :) I’m really pleased to hear that the music and ambiance seems to be loved by so many. Challenging combat is just not much of a draw for me. My characters need a reason to be risking their lives. :)
    Blackravenbooinyoureyes
  • RavenslightRavenslight Member Posts: 1,609

    My characters need a reason to be risking their lives. :)

    That skeleton called you a big dumbhead. Get him!
    LOL Thank you for the chuckle. :)
    ElrandirSilverstarCrevsDaakJuliusBorisov
  • elementelement Member Posts: 833
    I feel the same way tbh its never been my cup of tea in the same way that bg was the combat focus and lack of npcs makes it feel a little flat to me.

    the trick for me is to just go all out building around a theme for my parties that way the npcs don't feel quite such non entities. one of my favourites that I remember was a party of 6 mages each from a different school with a different alignment, it was quite a chaotic game
    Ravenslightrufus_hobartElrandirJuliusBorisov
  • booinyoureyesbooinyoureyes Member Posts: 6,164


    Also, with IWD, you can mix good and evil party members without concerns over intraparty conflicts - so with the addition of BG2 kits, you can now have a cavalier and a blackguard fighting side-by-side.

    Plus you can devise a legitimate reason as to WHY they would fight together. In Icewind Dale where the entire civilization is facing extinction they better! Imagine the sparks that would fly...
    QuartzRavenslightjackjack
  • ZeckulZeckul Member Posts: 1,036
    edited September 2014
    Icewind Dale has much more interesting and challenging combat than Baldur's Gate which make it more consistently fun and less frustrating. The combat mechanics in Baldur's Gate always were sort of broken, with some classes very obviously easier to play, bards almost useless, druids with poor spell selection, etc.

    Sure, Baldur's Gate has more quests and dialogue, but once you know them too well it loses its charm. IWD has the better replay value.

    Also, Icewind Dale just looks and sounds a lot more refined than BG, immersion-wise it's just one notch above.
    QuartzRavenslight
  • rufus_hobartrufus_hobart Member Posts: 490
    @Ravenslight‌

    Fair concerns to have about IWD, but if you are worried about a "party of NPCs that had no mind of their own", i would highly recommend you search out CapitanGarlic's magnificent playthrough of Icewind Dale 2.
    (address http://lparchive.org/Icewind-Dale-2/)

    It's a highly amusing, idiosyncratic, fourth wall breaking account, but completely brilliant and hilarious, and being as it's of #2, won't give any spoilers if you do decide to play #1.
    I think it's a perfect example of creating a party for a game like this than then takes on a life of its own and the individual personalities shine through. I had started my own similar style of playthrough for both games before reading it the first time, but gave up as I quickly realised that I had a couple of similar characters in my parties, and also that i would never scale the comedic heights of this, and I also started inadvertantly stealing lines from it as i was writing my own as they got stuck in my head.

    So yeah, definitely not a serious high fantasy party but I thought it gives a good example of how a group of characters can transform from a pedestrian lifeless lot supporting a main character to being individually distinct, relevent and important to the story.
    Ravenslightbooinyoureyes
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