From everything I've read, this project was canned some time ago. Does someone know something that I don't about this topic (i.e. is the game still in development in some top secret facility in Bolivia?), or has this forum become more of a nostalgic, "wouldn't it be cool if" sort of thing? Or perhaps, since this is the 2nd time BG3 has been announced and later canned, are we just waiting around for the next announcement that BG3 is in development and hoping the third time's the charm? ;)

How do you know about the operation in Bolivia! :eek: - now you mention it i was wondering exactly the same thing. :confused:

Was there a statement that they were not making BG3?

I know the years of silence pretty much mean that, and I have all but given up the idea of it being made, but I have not read an official statement from Atari or read anything here in the news sections.

Well, it might be made in year 20XX, announcing itself to be "descendant of highly nostalgic, althought very poorly made by novaday's standards, Baldu's Gate 2"
And, judging from where the whole game industry is going, it would be just 3 hours of playtime, and 40000000+ hours of incredibly detailed, beautifully made, highly realistic 3D movies. And then it would be said to be "So much better and more playable than it's predecessors." And millions of kids would laugh to the real BGs and say that only this latest one was truly playable.
And you can bet I would be and old man with cane, preaching about old good times.
"Ye young no-goods! In me youth, there be no these newfangled games with no playability! In me youth, ye had to move the characters yeself, continue damn dialogues yourselves and damn right ye had to fight yerself! And it be a million times more enjoyable than this novadays s**t! Baldur's gate be bloody good game, this new one be not!!"

And then the kids with their virtual realities and highly realistic robotic servants would laugh at me and call me crazy. :D :D

We can start now if you wish. LOL

So, as this topic stats, IS THERE A POINT anymore or what???

Of course there is. This forum promotes hope, and faith in humankind.

:p

Why is this forum still here?Who cares? It's the admin's board and he can do what he wants with it. Unless you mean the whole BoM, in which case I have to wonder the same. Wonders of life, maybe? :p

Who cares?Well, not to be overly obvious here, but I can think of at least one person... the guy who started this thread comes to mind.

It's the admin's board and he can do what he wants with it.I completely agree; however, the last time I checked it wasn't illegal to ask a question!

Hey, just stating the obvious. Don't take it too seriously.

IMO, it would be better to place forums according of what has been released and what has been officially dated to be released. The admin thinks otherwise, so that's why this forum is still here. Hence "he can do whatever he wants to do with it."

Or, perhaps he shares the same veiled hope that I do, which is that a certain developer (which shall remain nameless, but is currently developing NWN2), is soon to wrap up a really big project, (which shall also remain nameless, except for the fact I just named it) and might just end up with some additional bandwith on its hands to pick up a new project.

Yeah, now I think I'm dreaming.

1. As I've said here about a dozen times over the last couple of years, BG3 will be released at some point in the future. Just as Doom 3 was released, even if it took a (long) while. Publishers don't let hot licences and brand/name recognition go to waste. If there's one thing you can count on in the world of gaming, it's that you WILL get sequels to games that sell very well.

2. There are quite a few BG3 threads in this forum. It makes sense to keep them here, as well as the forum.

3. There will be more BG3 threads in the future, as well as speculative threads, or wish lists, or whatever, even if there is no more official news for some time. It equally makes sense to gather them all here.

So this is just a very quick take on "why is this forum still here".

I´m near my 30´s rigth now, and all this makes me remember when I was (very) young and a new Hollywood movie arrives to these shores:The Terminator!
It was (for me) the best movie ever, and I love the effects,the story,the plot and the final figth.
Many years later, the sequel just blew my mind.No comparission,better effects,better plot,better fitghs,ahhhh....I´ll never forget it(still watch it when I get the chance)
Then,someday in the future...the third part.
So many people try to convince me "this is even better than the last"(mostly TV payed movie critics),and I believe them(shame on me),just to find out a product made by the "Hollywood high standarts"(that means developed to make money and ****ing on fans expectances).
When I walked out of the teather, I get the feeling that I was robed...excuse me mr. Schwarznegger,that´s not what I´ve payed for!
I´m only hope that the history does not repeat itself!

I appreciate the detailed response Tal. It makes sense that it's just a matter of time (perhaps a lot of time) before something with the name "Baldur's Gate 3" hits the market. And, well, Boards of Magic will be well prepared when that day arrives ;) .

Exactly. ;)

This forum is still there because hope is a dangerous thing to lose.

I did have a weird dream that there was a new baldurs gate game. Its pretty fuzzy but there was something about spinning my guy and shooting simultaneous fireballs. Pretty sweet but weird.

Come to think of it... What's really popular right now? That's right... MMO's there's liek 50 of them.


Baldur's Gate Online

...GOOD GAME

heh, I knew I wouldn't read anything new on this since i've been gone...

What would the plot of a Baldur's Gate 3 even be like? Didn't they pretty much cover it with Throne of Bhaal?

I wouldn't mind a new Infinity Engine game, though. I just don't like NWN as much... to the point where NWN2 doesn't even really interest me.

[ January 30, 2007, 04:53: Message edited by: Otis ]

Baldur's Gate OnlineI, for one, would be disapointed beyond words if--when BG3 is finally developed--it ends up as an MMORPG. The Baldur's Gate series represents everything that is good about single player CRPGs. Let it ever remain so!!!

I would be really sad If they actually don't make BG3. Torm please make it possible even if just in europe.

Well, as long as it's not a console-only thing like the Dark Alliance series, I'll probably give it a chance.

A new BG game...BG3...a dream...
But i really think someday they will make it.
I think there's the opportunity to explain how the hero, maybe, lost his powers and tries to take them back....or something else.
But i really hope they make it a single player game and with the Infinity Engine, not something like NWN.
I want a game that plays and feels like BG1 and 2....that's really a dream of mine... :)

I, for one, would be disapointed beyond words if--when BG3 is finally developed--it ends up as an MMORPG. The Baldur's Gate series represents everything that is good about single player CRPGs. Let it ever remain so!!! damn straight.

I think there's the opportunity to explain how the hero, maybe, lost his powers and tries to take them back....or something else.Personally, I think that the story of the PC from BG 1 and 2 has been thoroughly concluded from a gaming standpoint. To me, an "oh no, the new Lord of Murder" has lost his powers" concept would be a serious "jump the shark" idea.

I could easily see a story that takes place prior to the events of the previous BG games, or something that takes place later. Perhaps BG3 focuses the child that the Bhaalspawn had with Aerie. The Bhaalspawn from the previous games could potentially have some "cosmic" influence over the life of his child. Or if we want to remove this from the original story a bit further, perhaps BG3 occurs several generations later.

In my opinion, the story is actually less important than staying true to the spirit of the original BG games. Sure, some nostaglic references to the events of the original games are sure to be popular, but some of the things that would need to be included to keep it "Baldur's Gate," are as follows:

-A story that takes place in the same general areas as the first game.
-A game that allows for a party of diverse companions, each with their own rich history, but fully equipable and controllable in combat (unless you're asking them to do something they are morally opposed to - e.g. asking Keldorn to kill Drizzt).
-A game with a deep and intricate plot, open ended storyline, and that is filled with unexpected twists and surprises. The story HAS to be bloody excellent.
-A top down, 3rd person viewpoint of the game.
-A game that is at least as much story based as it is combat based (i.e. not just a hack and slashfest)

Those are just a few comments off the top of my head. A game that veered from any of those would not like be worthy of the title Baldur's Gate 3, and I'm sure this list could be expanded quite a bit.

Another note, BG3 should not be about implementing the most cutting edge graphics to date. I would have no problem with stellar graphics, but if they come at the cost of story, building rich and memorables characters, then the priorities are wrong. To this day I am completely satisfied with BGs 2 Dimensional maps. It's not because I don't realize how far graphics technology has come. Rather, it's because I'm pulled in by the "full package" BG offers. I've gotten bored with plenty of beautiful, graphically stunning games before completing them only to load up a BG type game instead--even though I've completed many of these games numerous times.

I think I speak for the majority of BG fans when I say we want BG3 to embody what was great about BG1 and BG2 -- and bad ass graphics really aren't what this love affair is about.

If whoever develops BG3 hopes to score big and eventually do BG4 -- they ought to pay heed to posts such as this.

When they do end up making a Baldur's Gate 3 I doubt it will be the same character, since there were several endings to Throne of Bhaal and two of those involved turning into some type of God... It would probably be a different person around the same area, preferably actually IN Baldur's Gate(like the name implies...) Hell, if they really wanted to they could make it like a prequel and let you play one of the Gods during the Time of Troubles, either one of the normal Gods or make up your own God. I dunno, I just doubt the new game would have anything to do with the previous two. It'd be sorta like dragging the storyline to the point of utter boredom...

Nonetheless, they're gonna make a Baldur's Gate III. At least, someone will.

__________________________________________________ ______________________________________
Personally, I think that the story of the PC from BG 1 and 2 has been thoroughly concluded from a gaming standpoint. To me, an "oh no, the new Lord of Murder" has lost his powers" concept would be a serious "jump the shark" idea.
__________________________________________________ ______________________________________
Actually they left the end open you had two choices become the lord of Murder or not if not you could return to the sword coast and go adventuring on a series of subplot quests with a story line along the lines of your romance intrest being taken captive by old enemies or something of that nature. If you choose to become the lord of Murder then you could go off on a planescape torment type game with the solar to fight Cyric and his minions who has taken your title. So I don't really think they've finished the story line for BG with this character and to tell the truth I was somewhat disappointed that you couldn't continue on with the game after you made the choice. Just my two cents worth but I'd love to see a BG III that continues where TOB left off :)

Well, I didn't say that the story was over. Just that I felt it was over from a "gaming standpoint."

If BG3 were to start you off as a god, or perhaps the most powerful demi-god walking the face of faerun (depending on how you ended BG2 TOB), you really start running into some balance issues right away.

You finished BG2 TOB anywhere between level 30 - 40, and only became more powerful from there. From a gaming standpoint, there just really isn't anywhere you need to go from there. The power levels were already getting silly toward the end of TOB, and the thought of starting a game from there, and only increasing in power... well, all I can say is yikes.

From a storyline/creative standpoint, there are tons of possibilities, I agree. Perhaps a great opportunity for a novel. But I think the BG3 CRPG would makes a lot more sense focusing on someone who is at a much earlier stage in their journey.

I agree, for me low level characters are nice to play. I think that we level to quickly in games anyway.

From everything I've read, this project was canned some time ago. Does someone know something that I don't about this topic Yes. BG3 is being double packaged with Duke Nukem Forever. :p :lol:

Occasionally, grassroots nibbling gets the attention of the big dogs.

The BG spirit isn't just about playability, but RE-playability. Always new things to be found, a different combination of NPCs to play with quirky banters (Albeit a little limited in BG1) to experience. Any sequel would have to have equally diverse range of side-quests and NPCs to experience (With none of these randomly generated items like in NWN).

I definitely agree with Marceror about the graphics. I showed BGI to a friend the other day and they wouldn't believe me when I told them how old the game is. I feel like the graphics style and the engine are very timeless. So yeah, a MMORPG would be a huge disappointment, and I feel like story development is much more important than a new system or graphics.

And speaking of story, I think it would be awesome if you got to be Imoen's grandchild or something similar. Those kinds of parallels between Imoen and Gorion and BGIII and the BG trilogy in general would be very cool.

You finished BG2 TOB anywhere between level 30 - 40, and only became more powerful from there. From a gaming standpoint, there just really isn't anywhere you need to go from there. The power levels were already getting silly toward the end of TOB, and the thought of starting a game from there, and only increasing in power... well, all I can say is yikes.Then why not start at level 1?...
CHARNAME chooses godhood... becomes something Sarevok himself had ever dreamed of... to be the Lord of Murder Himself... CHARNAME becomes evil because of Bhaal's blood... CHARNAME wreaks havoc... sending forth hellish minions upon Faerun... meanwhile somewhere in the swordcoast, CHARNAME's wife (BG2 romance) is dying from old age while CHARNAME and CHARNAME's wife's (BG2 romance) seed (main char) seeks help for his/her dying mother... and the adventure begins... you go against the forces of evil again... but this time... you get to face Bhaal Himself (CHARNAME).

-if you choose an evil alignment, your mother will be Viconia
-if you choose a neutral alignment, your mother will be Jaheira
-if you choose a good alignment, your mother will be Imoen

if you choose a good alignment, your mother will be Imoen Or Aerie, if you're less interested in incest

What happens if <CHARNAME> was FEMALE? :confused:

Hmm, seems like this game is going to be relased only if someone on this forum actually writes one.

What happens if <CHARNAME> was FEMALE?Well, doh; your father is either Anomen, Minsc, or his hamster. One of the three anyway, since the protagonist had a concurrent romances -patch installed and took them with her to the planes. Now the new space-hampsters have reached maturity and need to leave the planes to find their own adventures.

[ December 15, 2006, 18:21: Message edited by: Wordplay ]

What happens if <CHARNAME> was FEMALE?Harhar... Well, every story starts somewhere, so it's just like saying "What if Sarevok was good?". Only the writer knows. So yeah, it's possible that the Bhaal incarnate is female. It would be interesting if it were like Golden Sun where you transfer data from GS1 to GS2 so when you play BG3, and you've finished ToB, there would be an option for you to transfer data from your ToB game and picks up info about your previous character, building the story from there.

I agree about Aerie for good alignment though, since Imoen somewhat has Bhaal blood on her, it would make you half siblings, making the main char for BG3 a retard. I just forgot about Aerie.

this has probably been said before, but BG3 could be the prequel to BG1, the end of BG2 doesnt seem to leave much of an opening for a sequel, well i suppose it does im probably just not thinking hard enough on it.

i suppose your char in BG3 could be Aerie's and <CHARNAME>'s child or possibly a descendant of said child, how strong is the tainted of Bhaal in <CHARNAME>, would it be passed on to the next generation? It not the greatest of storylines but plausible. but this storyline is kinda sad to people who had female characters in Baldur's Gate, so i dont think it would be the storyline they would use.

also i dont think it would be BG without Minsc and Boo, so they would have to be in it.


i dont know i was just rambling off ideas

It does not matter how you do it, as long as it has a connection to the city of baldurs gate. The title says baldurs gate not<charname> the characters are nice, very nice but so many things happen i a city, so why not something else.

OInce thay made tha characters we still know today, so it can be done before. no writer is going to please all of us with a sequel or prequel.

why not a story about Balduran herself, the founding of the city. What about just before the time of troubles, or during the time of troubles. It is wise not to continue with viconia, jaheira and the rest.

(yes I confess I never played the dynamic space duo past Irenicus lair and I like Nalia)(sob)

why not a story about Balduran herself Correct me if I'm wrong, but wasn't Balduran depicted as male?

What about just before the time of troubles, or during the time of troubles. It is wise not to continue with viconia, jaheira and the rest.
This would be wise, IMO. It makes little sense to flog a dead horse, no matter how interesting and/or dynamic (and occasionally annoying) many of the characters were. If BG3 wants to be a brilliant game, then it'll need it's own remarkable characters/plot, rather than trying to ride the BG name to fame, so to speak. A new engine, styled after BG in the top-down sense, would be nice, although the environments could stand to be a little more interactive. BG3 wouldn't need to re-invent the wheel, but I definitely approve of it borrowing the ideas that made the original BG's so cherishable. However, I would hate for this game to turn in to a gimmick geared towards inducing nostalgia in return for the money and hope of BG fans everywhere. No, for this game to work, it'll need one thing: a clever mixture of both innovation and 'selective' borrowing from its predecessors.

for this game to work, it'll need one thing: a clever mixture of both innovation and 'selective' borrowing from its predecessors. yes that is very true. lots of great and new stuff, with some of the old.

for in some people's minds there are certain things that are "very BG" certain NPCs like Minsc, he has been there since the beginning, i know some people dont like him and never use him at all, but to others it jsut wouldnt be BG without him.

Call it Baldur's Gate if its set in or centered around Baldur's Gate (as in the city) but the Bhaal saga is done. Finished. Over. Concluded. You could have it set after the events of the Bhaal Saga with some of the old NPCs making a comeback as NON PLAYABLE characters, say questgivers and such and assuming that <Charname> didn't take Godhood since according to WotC the events in Baldur's Gate didn't take place according to Forgotten Realms lore, or at least the major events such as killing Drizzt, exterminating the Shadow Thieves of Amn, or the revival/creaton of a new god (if you did that).

It would have to assume <charname> had no romantic interactions with anyone, was a certain gender (up to whoever writes it to decide), stopped Sarevok in BG I, killed Irenecus in BG II and killed Sharencal (sp?) in BG II: ToB then turned down godhood. For that reason I imagine <Charname> would have to have been a good alignment and would have had a positive effect on all his companions.

Keldorn can NOT make a comeback, he's dead. Although maybe his daughters could, for example.

Set it in the same area as the Bhaal Saga with characters/references to the Bhaal Saga but have a new storyline/plot/villian and the like.

IMO,if you are battling Cyric then it's possible for you to be a high level char...It would be very interesting to have battles against gods...

It would be an act of suicide! No normal mortal would stand a chance againced a god (Unless you used Cyric's old blade againced him [also imposable])

Actually the player never battled Cyric, just some of his minions in a 'test'. Not to mention the PC would have to battle a god for their 'portfolio', so the only things the PC could get from Cyric would be murder, madness and... I forget, something nasty anyway. I don't understand why a good PC would be motivated to become an evil god.

Not to mention WotC would never approve.

more than likely been said but what are peoples thoughs on BG3 being a prequel to BG?

i personally dont like it all that much when prequels to games (and some movies) have better items/classes and the like than the original/s, and doesnt really offer any explaination for why the arent in the original. but that doesnt mean in any way i wont play or watch them, its just how i feel is all.

(take the star wars movies, episodes 1 - 3 has way better droids and ships than episodes 4 - 6, but it kinda has an explanation or whatever, the Empire possibly may have destoryed all or most of the reminents of the old republic, hence why they arent in the earlier movies.)


would a game set say during the Time of Troubles be too weird for some people?, or a game where you play during the time of Balduran, or prehaps a little while after (or even before)

im not to sure another BG game that is part of the BG1 and BG2 saga will happen but i think another BG game in say the Dark Alliance saga or prehaps some other spin off may happen, i havent play any of the Dark alliance games yet so i dont know how the end.

Icewind Dales are 'prequels' to Baldur's Gate but they take place in a completely different part of the world and have no reference to the time of troubles and/or the events surrounding the Bhaal Saga.

I would rather see an Eberron D&D game. I've been reading the books and I'm starting to like the world alot.

Icewind Dales are 'prequels' to Baldur's Gate but they take place in a completely different part of the world and have no reference to the time of troubles and/or the events surrounding the Bhaal Saga.
i know that, IWD is what 32 years or so before Drizzt was born or whatever which is why i suggested something a little closer to the BG1 and BG2 timeline.

I am sick and tired of Bhaal. Just start at level one, different elven priestesses, and no space hamsters. Surely more than Bhaal has happened in Baldurs gate.

Icewind Dales are 'prequels' to Baldur's Gate but they take place in a completely different part of the world and have no reference to the time of troubles and/or the events surrounding the Bhaal Saga.If BG3 is a prequel to BG, then I've already played BG3! :D -joke

Anyways, I'm really hoping this wouldn't be the case (BG3 being a prequel, that is). I kinda hope it would somehow continue the saga. I dig the story and all. The BG series "story" was what made me like CRPGs in the first place. It was plotted in a way that the story was not that linear... twists, surprises. A prequel would be a big disappointment for me, that's for sure.

And about BG3 being "before the time of troubles", well, I don't know. If it were T.V., BG from start to BG-ToB would be a series and BG3 would be a movie. So why call it BG3 if that's the case?

So why call it BG3 if that's the case? Probably because whoever would be producing the next BG would want the brand name attached. Fans of the series would be more likely to buy BG3 than the next Dark Alliance for PC, even if they were the same game. It all goes down to marketing.

IWD was horribly disappointing plotwise with all 6 characters being "you".

Fortunately in Neverwinter the road of a single player character with NPCs joining him was the path chosen and I hope future games will not stray from that path. If I want hacknslay with zero interparty interaction, I'll play an MMORPG, thanks. Speaking of which, DDO is already there and should be reason enough not to make BG3 an MMORPG.

As for BG3, I hope they make it. The epilogue in TOB however exhausts any chance of seeing the old NPCs we hold dear so much ever again - a shame especially regarding Edwin, Neverwinter failed to produce even one mage character coming close to him at all.

For now, the Broken Hourglas seems to be our last change to revitalize this type of game.

IWD was horribly disappointing plotwise with all 6 characters being "you".You need 6 characters because the IWD series was more battle oriented, not like the BG series. I can't recall a battle with tons of orcs, orc shamans, orc fire starters, runners, worgs, worg riders, or yuan-ti in BG (except maybe the kobold-spawning Firewine ruins... and the place with a lot of xvarts... weak xvarts). No banters, blah, blah, blah. It makes a good strategy game though, what with different choices.

I enjoyed IWD and creating my own characters. You can have themed parties and play as you wish. IWD was not a BG clone and never pretended to be so.

IWD was actually more of a filler to keep BG fans on their toes as they waited for BGII to come out. Hat's off to Black Isle for customer support, eh?

@Nakia:
I agree. The story was mostly there merely to keep the action rolling; it really couldn't compare to any one of the other IE games. However, there was more strategy involved, and the hack'n'slash gameplay definitely made for a welcome relief for those lying in anticipation of BGII. And I can safely say that, for me, it served its purpose.

but the severed hand, just wonderful. It stil had story

Icewind Dales are 'prequels' to Baldur's Gate but they take place in a completely different part of the world and have no reference to the time of troubles and/or the events surrounding the Bhaal Saga.Wrong. Xan's cousin is in the game. First in Easthaven where he hang out in the Inn, and then his corpse and diary can be found in Dragon's Eye, explaining how he is Xan's cousin.

You sound just like my niece who can drone up almost any elder scrolls fact.

gnomes live for quite some time dont they?

IWD is what 30 or so years before Drizzt came to Fae'run innit?


for me it just wouldnt be BG without Minsc (and Boo), all the romance, tons of quests, NPC Banter/flirts (with or without the mods), huge epic story centering around the PC (and their siblings in some way).

I enjoyed the story of Baldur's Gate, and all of the romances and side quests; but in IWD, I enjoyed how the characters weren't the centre of the universe as they seemed to be in BG. I don't want to be special. I would like to be able to make your whole party, still be able to get NPCs, and be able to have millions of little side quests, etc. I think it should be some time after BG, where the Children of Bhaal and the Destruction they wrought would be nothing more than a legend.

I would like to be able to make your whole party, still be able to get NPCs, and be able to have millions of little side quests, etcsounds like multiplayer on BG, where you make more than one person then throw in any NPCs you want.

I think it should be some time after BG, where the Children of Bhaal and the Destruction they wrought would be nothing more than a legend. it doesnt seem all that BG if the children of Bhaal dont play some role in the story.

i think BG3 would either in some way involve the child of your character from BG, or it would be the prequel to BG, if it is a prequel it could be set in the time of troubles, or having something to do with Balduran.

The city Baldur's Gate is named after Balduran after all.

The baldurs gate series was a masterpiece from begining to end, but thats just it, it had a very final ending. Why do people think a third title is in the making, there couldn't possibly be a continuation, from the original storyline that would suit everyones prefered ending, the way i see it is that NWN is the new (if pathetic by comparison) Baldurs gate. I figure this game should be left as it is because it could only be tainted if a NEW-AGE installment was made. (cough... S.W. episodes 1-3, ring any bells?)

Well, Man_solo, it's not in the making yet, but it will be sooner or later.

While I was, and continue to be, a big fan of Baldur's Gate, I highly doubt they will ever continue this particular story line unless they're absolutely sure they can get away with it. Since the storyline essentially completely ended, they would have to make a very elaborate reintroduction of the storyline.

Since the entire story of Baldur's Gate inextricably revolves around the "Child of Bhaal" phenomenon, I believe it is impossible.


Instead, I find it much more likely, and much more desirable to pull an IWD2 and just make a whole new story. Not a sequel or expansion, a whole new game that plays the same as the lovable old games. Sure we now have games like Neverwinter Nights, Oblivion, Fable, WoW... and so on. But what's the last top down D&D-based game that actually played like Baldur's Gate played? Ice Wind Dale 2. Well, I'm not sure how NWN2 played.

At any rate, I'm rooting for either a BG or NWN style game that allows the full complement of 6 characters, current generation graphics and playability, in a whole new setting. I, personally, want to get the heck away from both the sword coast AND the northern wastes. I'm sick of both places. As I see it, that means they have two choices- start up a whole new story in a section of the world that hasn't been seen before, or a whole new world. I kind of favor the latter, because then they could add in whole new races and classes and feats. True that would change the nature of the game itself away fromt eh BG model, but if they keep the gameplay and most other mechanics along the same lines, then it will still be a spiritual successor and therefore still good.

Bottom line of my post- Make a whole new game, unrelated to the stories of either Ice Wind Dale or Baldur's Gate. In fact, if they could do a KoToR in the setting of Baldur's Gate... that would be singularly awesome. (Although, suddenly I don't remember if Black Isle had anything to do with the first kotor... I'd swear that Obsidian only did the second one, and that the second had way better mechanics... anyway my point stilll stands)

You know, I would love it if we could have a proper RPG game with point and click mechanisms like how you had in Baldur's Gate...

I know, we have NWN2 but its pretty disappointing so far. Temple of Elemental Evil came pretty close to it, but it was a crap game with an excellent interface and combat engine.

Seeing as Baldur's Gate is a place I don't see why we can't have a number 3 set after TOB with new characters unrelated to TOB, but with what happened in BG2:TOB as a part of how this world's people are shaped.

Based purely along the lines of BG3 likely being a HUGE disappointment, I sincerely hope that they leave the series in peace.

I can't really think of how they'd be able to continue the storyline for a third one, but if they did produce one I wouldn't mind giving it a try.

Even if it's as disappointing as other people think, I'd still try the game anyway... no matter what the story is about.

I don't know why many people "oppose" the alleged production of BG3 with reasons like "it would ruin the BG series" and all... honestly, I don't see the connection, but as an avid cRPG lover, I for one hope people would continue developing such games. I wouldn't want such priceless games to halt it's advance just because other people are paranoid (most likely a result of NWN, but I might be wrong). It may be a gamble, but we, as a people, had to gamble a lot to come up with our technology nowadays. So why not gamble with BG3? We'll never know if it's good if we keep on criticizing a game that's not even developed yet... AFAIK. All it needs is patience and an open mind. You never know, after playing it, you might think it's better than the previous BGs :thumb:

Yes, it has chance to be good game, if it will be developed someday.

or say screw it and make a new game, call it Longsaddle or something.

Say... Fable wasn't all that good... and it wasn't BG3... which means... IMHO calling it something else doesn't guarentee it would be as good as the other BGs

No, it doesn't, but what it does do is allow them to start fresh with something new instead of having to try to continue a story that ended. A BG3 game would be just that, continuing a story that's obviously run it's course.

The reason I said start new with something like Longsaddle is because then you are able to have a game based in the same world without having to live up to the expectations of a BG3. A BG3 would be judged based on how well it tied into the bg2 story. I'd rather see a game judged purely on it's own merits. It can even happen after bg2. Could even make the Sword Coast part of the game. They can keep some of the same npc's making it seem familiar. Like maybe you can buy supplies from Ribald for instance.

And the sarcastic a**hattery isn't necessary. Nor was it warrented.

I have to agree...

But the thing is, BG has been such a success that naming a game with "BG" in it would be a marketing success for developers. So I'm not surprised if such a game would come out anytime soon. We might as well just live with it.

Or if the developers are that daring, then why not call it "The Edge of Toril", where the entire world (Toril) is the playground and not just Faerun. With more or less 100 hours of gameplay ;)

A tie-in to the Planescape universe might be neat. If BG3 is to exist, I would hope that it will harbor Planescape/BGII-esque depth of plot and character development, respectively; rather than focusing on gimmicky new ideas and deviations that would deter from the classic BG experience. That is to say, if BG3 pulled a NWNII I almost certainly wouldn't buy it (no offense meant towards those who enjoyed the latter, of course).

It's been said, most people wouldn't buy it if it was made like NWN..

then main question for any gamemaker to start work on bg3 is: can I use the D&D ruleset. Whit out it, no bg3. Gamemakers are not stupid, they know how much copies of bg1/2 Iwd1/2 and nwn1 are sold. (I know they appear stupid, but please do not go into that or this topic can become locked)

So if I was making games for money I would have made a BG3. And a miniature set of the game, complete with all the D&D stuff as we know it, including an Ingame colossal dragon, the works.

So why not? As far as I know Atari owns the rights. Until they sell it we will not see BG3.

Wow, this little thread is still plugging along.

I'm pretty convinced--call me jaded--that when and if BG3 is created, it will be a disappointment.

Computer games just aren't made the way they were back in the days of the Baldur's Gate series. Creativity routinely takes a back seat to inflexible deadlines, and games get released unfinished and feeling rather uninspired.

It seems that all but gone are the days of gaming geeks getting together and building amazing games that don't get released until they're ready, and filled with massive amounts of content highly interesting content.

In my opinion, the Baldur's Gate series will never be topped (or more precisely, equaled) from an immersion, content, and sheer "oh my god" perspective. Graphics-wise, sure we've topped this series eons ago, but stunning, CPU-screeching graphics weren’t enough to keep me hooked for long enough to complete Neverwinter Nights 2. I lost interest on that one somewhere in chapter 2 after getting tired of tweaking graphic settings to maximize FPS and battling to maintain some semblance of control over my party. Oh, and it was something of an insult to my intelligence that the game only gave the "illusion" of choice so often.

* * * *

"No Khelgar, over my dead body am I going to travel with your Dwarven arse!! I'd sooner kill you than travel with you!" -- load next scene -- Khelgar says something like, "I'm glad you've decided to accept me as your life-long companion. We’d better get a move on then."

Holy mother of god. Please, god, tell me that didn't just happen. /quits game in disgust.

* * * *

I couldn’t get through NWN2 once, yet I’ve completed all of the games in the BG series, including the expansions, numerous times. I guess that after you know how good something can be, it’s hard to settle for less.

Yep, I'm jaded, and have had my hopes dashed by developers/publishers a few too many times, I’m afraid. And as long as Atari owns the rights to D&D, well, hell, I won't even waste my time by going there.

BG1 and BG2, and Planescape Torment for that matter, were the full package. You take out too much of what’s there, and you start to lose the magic, and end up with an average game instead of a masterpiece. This is what seems to happen with every single CRPG that’s come out since—so much wasted potential. Tis a shame :(

http://www.gamespot.com/news/6169998.html?action=convert&om_clk=latestnews&tag=latestnews;title;1

I don't really know if that's a good or a bad thing. Ofcourse it is sad for the people getting sacked... Will this affect BG 3?

Layoffs are always an unfortunate scenario, but being that BG 3 is merely an idea at this point, I'd say that this will have no impact on the non-existent BG 3.

well it seems Projeckt Jeffersons former lead designer, will try to create Bg3: the black hound in the nwn2 engine.

http://theblackhound.googlepages.com/

Something to keep in mind is that they could easily do what they did with Doom 3. A recreation and a new Storyline. Carry on the name without necessarily making it an outright continuation of the same line.

Which is something to really think about. It could be good and in some ways it's what AD&D is about.

Alright, having played NWN finally, and discovering that I hate it, I fervently wish for a BG3 that uses the same setup as the originals did. In fact, if they could remake the original BG and BG2 and ToB with the latest version of D&D and current gen graphics and such, I'd totally buy it.

You know, one of these days the game companies (more likely the publishers rather than the developers) will realize thar's gold in them thar old games to be refurbished. I vote for recycling the old games, taking the essence of the game and polishing it to today's standards. I would totally buy a refurbished version of the original command and conquer. Hell, Valve already refurbished one of their games a little... outfitting the original Half-life with Source and including it free with 2. Didn't change it much, but it looked better and felt a little better. But I would never have PAYED for Half-life Source... a refurbished game should be completely decked out with current-gen bells and whistles, bringing the old game back into new life, worth every penny.

Anyway yeah... a new BG game, the same top-down 6 character formula, new story, latest verison of D&D, decent enough graphics, and hundreds of hours of play time, and I'm sold :p

I don't want much, do I?...

well there is a fan project going in nwn2, where they are recreating BG with the NWN2 engine, if they pull it off it will be awesome.

Icewind gate was not bad. It was very different to play bg2 with the icewind dale ruleset.

The real question of BG3 is WHO will make it, not IF it will be made. If it's Obsidian, I would like to call for a boycott and ignore it's existence. Many games have seen the deeper end of a dump and never been heard of ever again and I can name more than 1 that came from that company.

I wish Bioware would have kept it and made more, but I'm sure they would rather work on new projects, like their Xbox game coming out soon. Hopefully the next installment will be made by a company like Blizzard or Bioware who are actually willing to put work into make the game good.

Oh my. If Blizzard were to take on BG3...I think I'd even play it with it having 3e rules!

I didn't even consider Blizzard making BG3... haha... it's mind blowing :p , but I don't know if it would turn out too well. Blizz is good at Action Adventure (Diablo and WoW), not cRPG.

(Then again NWN2 is a AA, not a cRPG if you get down to the essentials).

Actually, Blizzard has been best at strategy. Warcrafts 1 through 3 and Starcraft were all great games. Though considering their only forays into RPG territory spawned the Diablo series and an MMO (which is the spawn of Satan, as far as I'm concerned :p ), I'm a bit less happy at the thought of them making it. But you simply can't deny their ability to spin a story, which is an important part of any RPG.

Yes, Blizzard has very compelling stories in their strategy games. However, they lacked an essential part to make it into a crpg like bg: choice. The story lines are great, but very linear. There is no choice. In the case of a strategy game, that's not that bad, as you're the field commander, not the main character of the story.

However, Blizzard games are very entertaining with rather easy and intuitive controls. So I'd not be opposed to them making it. However, there's still the legal issue of the d&d rules. I don't see Blizzard going after them, since they have their own rules, and more important: their own universe(s). They already have the warcraft and starcraft universes to work with. Why would they work in the d&d universe, where they are less free and people would only compare it to their warcraft universe?

It's a bit the same reason why Bioware makes their own universes now: freedom. Hence, it will only be a company that for some reason cannot create their own universe that will probably develop BG3 if ever it gets developed. Look at NWN2. Bioware didn't even develop it themselves. Even they got to the point they don't need to license universes from other peope anymore. Their brand is already widely recognised, just as Blizzard.

Yeah, that's a neat idea, an indie developer coming along to make BG3... assuming they had a producer with the cash to make it happen with decent development time.

However, it has to remain in the world of Faerun (or whatever the world of BG is called... I don't remember suddenly). It could not keep the name Baldur's Gate and be baldur's gate without being in the same universe.

If you just want a spiritual successor... just wait for the next multiple character rpg with multiclassing, and voila. But it won't be BG3 unless either Bioware makes it or it's set in the BG universe. Even if some other party came along and said they loved BG so much that whatever game they're making is a spiritual successor... what right do they have to call it that? Who are they? They've got no cred. And yeah, if Obsidian tried to do it... I'm all for that boycott. Kotor2 was technically superior to Kotor1 in many ways (feats, forces, etc), but there are plot holes and dead ends enough for their motto to be- Obsidian: where plots go to die. Sure the basic main plot was decent enough... but it was shaky, oh yes. Then again, maybe the story and plots of Kotor weren't in the hands of either developer... maybe lucasarts was in control of that? To make sure it stuck with the star wars themes? anyway...

I just hope they don't try to continue the whole Child of Bhaal thing... except in dialog about history or something. They need to put that in the past and start a whole new exciting, powerful story, maybe this time heading more towards the Blood War... that'd be interesting.

Bg3 will definatly be in 3d though. as well as in 3.5 ed d&d rules. Both of these factors will completely ruin the game. Bigtime. I hope BG3 never gets made. BG2 ended great and should stay that way so it will remain a classic story.

As earlier mentioned I would by bg3 even if it was graphically enhanced version of Child of Bhaal Storyline (maybe including few more places to go in BG2 and more sidequests [hey it would be new game after all])

Actually, it's not completely Obsidian's fault for what went wrong in kotor2. They were just to small to put off the distributor until the game was completely finished, leading to dead ends in plots, since they didn't get the time to finish them, although they were initially planned. The advantage of a big developer is that it can say it won't release the title until it is really finished, but small startups like Obsidian don't have the financial means to survive that.

I'm not against Obsidian developing the game. You forget it's the people that make Obsidian that actually worked as Black Isle on BG together with Bioware. Maybe a joint operation of both again would be nice. Bioware would bring the technical skills, in which they are superior to Obsidian, and the big money so as to not have to rush out the game prematurely. Obsidian would bring great character development and superb scenario writers. Both companies have their strengths and it is the combination of both that made the original BG such a success.

They afterwards both tried to do it solo, Bioware with Icewind Dale and Black Isle (Obsidian) with Planescape Torment, both inferior to BG on one point or another. ID on actual RPG elements and immersiveness. PT on technical level (remember the sluggishness?).

Actually, BIS didn't have much to do with the original Baldur's Gate. BioWare developed it for BIS, sharing certain common resources like sound/voice recording with Interplay (and BIS, by association).

Also, BIS developed both Icewind Dale and Planescape: Torment. As for "inferiority", that's kind of like saying that apples are inferior to oranges. You can make such a claim based on personal taste, but that makes it your subjective view and nothing more. I certainly had as much fun with the original IWD as I had with BG, despite them being games with significantly different concepts. IWD has never pretended to be anything else but a good hack & slash game. And for people able to enjoy a hack & slash game, it was very good indeed.

As for Planescape: Torment, today its lack of higher resolution options is a detriment to its enjoyment for many, though I still have hopes that the vast IE modding community might actually produce a mod that will allow for higher resolutions one day (even if only 800x600). The sluggishness that you mention was a bug present in the unpatched game and corrected with the first patch and hasn't been a problem since. I've certainly never experienced it during several PS:T plays.

But frankly, considering the plethora of other aspects where PS:T excels, even the 640x480 resolution is but a small inconvenience.

Actually, in a game like PST the low resolution is less killer than in a game like BG where it limits your tactical view of the party.

It's true, I should have phrased the inferiority part better, and use a less strict word. I just meant that BG was so successful because of the blend in tactical combat and engaging characters and story line. Both PST and IWD, although being better at what they do than BG, only cover one of the aspects.

From a story and (non-player) character development, PST is even more fleshed out than BG (although there can be discussion about BG2). And considering challenging combat, you can't be better served by ie games than by IWD. However, they did not offer the blend, the exact point that made BG so popular. BG isn't as extreme in the two main gaming axis as the other two, but it merges them nicely together in a coherent package.

Both roleplayers as powergamers can fully enjoy BG while both be put off respectively by IWD and PST.

This is what I meant with inferiority. Not so much a general inferiority, as well that they were inferior in scope to BG, regarding the different possible avenues a crpg can go down.

Considering your comparing apples with oranges, I consider it more comparing chocolate cake, whipped cream and cherries with Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Forest_gateau). ;)

Honestly, if BG3 was made as a 3d version of BG1-BG2:ToB, I would finally be able to get my friends to play it. Their only complaint and reason for not buying/playing BG2 (much less BG1), is the poor graphics. They are so accustomed to having nice graphics and resolutions that the BG series is unplayable for them.

This doesn't go for people who started on the BG series, (honestly I can't stand BG1 without tutu, because I started off with the gorgeous BG2 graphics), but for everyone else, especially the huge uprising in the new generation of gamers, it's not enough to have good gameplay (which is a concept long forgotten it seems), they need the graphics.

Honestly, if they can do BG2 type graphics, but 3d, it would be wonderful. I wouldn't even be opposed to a FP-RPG version of BG, with fully autonomous NPC's that don't suck. It would be very awesome to have uncontrollable NPC's, with good use of Skills standing behind you, doing their own thing - a true D&D experience.

FIRST OFF.....as a baldurs gate lover,i can honestly say,that part one was good for its time,but part 2,blew part one away,hands down,no contest!
better story,cooler bad guy,more hidden characters,longer game....takes 15-16 hours to beat......extreme mode is rediculousely hard,which makes it more fun,characters are over-personalized(example-dorn flirts with all women in the game)(borador is a typical angry dwarf with a persecution complex)
individual character quests......more to do with weapon and armor customizing,and part three would be even more awesome,and would definately sell. most bg haters would rent the game,to see how stupid it is,and end up loving it.
i realy hope they make the third one,i was realy hoping to fight that pharoah i saw at the end of 2.

Dorn, Borador? 15-16 hours to complete? What game are you talking about exactly? These names are not familiar to me in Baldur's Gate 2, and I've played it many times. And you must be flying to finish it in 15 hours.

Is this a mod, or are you highly sleep deprived... or something?

He's talking about the Dark Alliance games for PS2 :p.

That would have been my other guess.

:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

Actually, I have heard that there is a professional group of modders looking to create BGIII on the NWN engine... it was mentioned in PC Gamer somewhere. Dunno if this was mentioned elsewhere in this thread, yet.

it would be the group of ppl who contributed in making of nwn2. I heard there is chance that bg3 will be released as nwn2 mod.

to be honest, if bg3 turns out to be like nwn 1 & 2, I'm NOT buying it. actually, I would not see bg3 released at all since bg2 was just so god damn awesome there is not way this bg3 will meet up with bg2 standard. plus, most rpgs all revolves around being MMORPG, I dont think developers would put that much effort in npc interactions nor story. it's all about $$ now, you know. lately rpg games has been such a disappointment. all they care about is pretty graphics.

You missed the witcher. Long, good story, interaction, a bit of romance and sex. Not the scale of bg2 but a whole lot more than today's current games. If it had dice in it....

An other thought. Remeber Lord of the Rings. The books have been around for decades gathering dust on the library shelves, but after Peter Jacksonh's movie's it was a hype. Have you any idea how much LotR stuff has been sold compared to the 25 years beore teh movies. If Atari looses the rights, or does something whit it, whitin five years we can be swimming in BG3 stuff.

Darned, the false hope!

Damn ye all, ye scallywags!!!!

:D

BG3 as a NWN2 mod would be...a joke, imo. BG's meant to play on the infinity engine. The Aurora engine (or whatever one it is now) never appealed to me to be honest.

The books have been around for decades gathering dust on the library shelves, but after Peter Jacksonh's movie's it was a hype.

I really can't agree with the tenor of that comment, Merlanni. These books have seen many printings and have been popular for a long time. They can hardly have been described as "sitting around gathering dust," before they were translated into film. And while Jackson's movies may have added some "hype" to the LotR saga, there has mostly been a lot of real substance, not only in the books themselves, but in the interest in medieval mythology, that infomred Tolkien's work.

A figure of speech about gahtering dust. They tend to be cleaned on a regular bases.

If I would to ask at work how many people have read LotR, or know about it now, than everybody has seen the movies, and and few out of 25 have read the books. If I ask that question heren almost everybody would have read those books several times and owns the movies. A large portion of us even has the extended extras expensive whit discs you never get out of the box edition.

If I would ask that question at work one year before the films came out, only 2 out of 25 knew the excistance of LotR. (Yes I haver asked around some time ago)I found two who have read the books. (both supervisors) If I would ask that question on the streets perhaps one out of 15. But after the movies people are Bored of the Rings.

I go to an annual fantasy fair. The number of visistors rocketed upwarts after the movies. Even people who do not know how to open a book know about it and drag their young to it, dressed in whatever rags they can find. It has been re-put on the map by peter jackson. And Harry Potter helped.

It all depends on your environment. I live in a small very religious town. A few towns togeter make for one library that is small and open a few hours per week. They owned an old version of the series, but after the movies the shelve has doubled.

Returning to games. How many LotR ames have been developed during and after the movies? How many before? One? None? I do not know, but I know that I am now being beet to death whit it. Even a MMorpg. Unthinkalble before the movies.

So, if a hit movie was to come out based on bg2...

There were several LOTR games out before the movies came. 5-6, give or take. Old ones mind you, and not very good. Except for the two RP ones for dos. Those were kind of fun. The super nintendo action\rpg was fun too.

Funny how often people will complain that movies or games just keep being made the same or off the same premises or without unique stories.... and yet here we all are wishing for even just a redone version of a great game, and they won't sell it to us!

Swallow your pride, developers, and give us what we want! MORE OF THE SAME!!!

:P

(I know many of you might actually prefer something different, but I'm going with "but you probably also liked NWN, so I have no regard for your opinions." :))

Personally I'm hoping for a return to the infinity engine style games for PC, whether its called BG3 or something else, just something remeniscent of the 5 DnD Infinity Engine games we have. Although I do agree with a lot of people that the Bhaalspawn story arc is finished, I can't imagine how they could continue it, but I would love to see another 2 or 3 games (with expansions of course!) creating another story arc.

Personally I'm hoping for a return to the infinity engine style games for PC, whether its called BG3 or something else, just something remeniscent of the 5 DnD Infinity Engine games we have. Although I do agree with a lot of people that the Bhaalspawn story arc is finished, I can't imagine how they could continue it, but I would love to see another 2 or 3 games (with expansions of course!) creating another story arc.

Indeed! I share your desires for more infinity engine style games. . . .

Aurora Engine

Aurora Engine

Care to elaborate on what your point is? :P

Atari isn't going to make a decent version even if they actually do make one, so I say we make our own. We could call it Ballder's Door so as to avoid copyright infringement. You'd start out in the Torchpossession Library... ok.. *ahem* I'll stop.

it would be the group of ppl who contributed in making of nwn2. I heard there is chance that bg3 will be released as nwn2 mod.

to be honest, if bg3 turns out to be like nwn 1 & 2, I'm NOT buying it. actually, I would not see bg3 released at all since bg2 was just so god damn awesome there is not way this bg3 will meet up with bg2 standard. plus, most rpgs all revolves around being MMORPG, I dont think developers would put that much effort in npc interactions nor story. it's all about $$ now, you know. lately rpg games has been such a disappointment. all they care about is pretty graphics.


Josh Sawyer wants to make a Black Hound aka Jefferson aka BG3 module for NWN2.

Josh Sawyer Interview 2-13-07 (http://www.gamebanshee.com/interviews/theblackhound1.php)

Yes, very old news and I seriously doubt he'll ever have enough time to actually finish it.