Just wondering who is looking to try BGEE right away....

I most likely will. I'll be due for another BG runthrough soon anyway, and I suppose it might as well be with the EE. That said, I haven't preordered or anything yet, so I am holding out a certain level of resistance, it would seem.

I already purchased it. 1 month to go.

Already have.

I won't.

Too expensive for what is essentially not much more than widescreen mod.

I most likely won't get it at all. Why pay a premium price for a game that I already own?

I won't. I still have too many games left that I haven't played yet (some even back from the steam winter sale) that I want to have a go at first.

The new content does not look exciting enough to warrant a purchase anytime soon; besides I don't really have the BG itch.

Not likely as BG works fine for me as it is.

I will, mainly as a show of support for future efforts.

I'm not sure. Probably not, but more from lack of attention than anything else. Or money. It will depend on when it's actually released and whether I know it's released or not, and if I have enough money at the time. And I'm probably going with the Mac version, since it's my newer computer and I'm not sure how my old computer fits with the system requirements (specifically the graphics card -- I'm not sure what "equivalent" I have). But after I get my new computer (probably next summer), I'll look into the PC version.

Not for $19.99....

I already have. I've wanted to play it again for a while now (and expand on my ideas for a mod) so this is the perfect opportunity.

Also, when some game *expansions* (Sims, WoW) are close to $40, is $19.99 really that bad?

20 bucks does seem a bit steep, but I really want to support anyone who's going to do any work with the Infinity Engine. The golden days of RPGs have come and gone, and anything to bring them back is to be cherished.

PC version of course.

I have as well. It'll be interesting to see the new areas. Have a few more NPCs to choose from.

Is $20 really an issue for some people?

It's an issue when it's basically half the price of a new game, except you're paying it for a 14 year old game. It's not even a remake with a new engine, just a small overhaul of the existing engine. And there's plenty of mods out there that have a lot more new content that are free.

By buying this you're not supporting people making this kind of CRPGs, you're supporting the rehashing of old stuff and paying high prices for barely any content (it's no better than most DLC in this respect).

But if it sells well, the there might be a chance that they do Icewind Dale 1+2 and Torment.
Which would be nice.

It's an issue when it's basically half the price of a new game, except you're paying it for a 14 year old game. It's not even a remake with a new engine, just a small overhaul of the existing engine. And there's plenty of mods out there that have a lot more new content that are free.

By buying this you're not supporting people making this kind of CRPGs, you're supporting the rehashing of old stuff and paying high prices for barely any content (it's no better than most DLC in this respect).

Your right, kind of... but this is the test run to see if there is interest in rehashing the old games. If there is enough support, then there is a good possiblity that they can start redoing more titles, with more room to expand/improve/upgrade the games, like BG2, IWD, etc.. Maybe, possibly even moving into the realm of a BG3 or a similar type of game with new content. This quite possibly could be the resurrection of CRPGs that I for one have been looking for. That alone is worth my $18 pre-order buckaroos.... I hate the current MMO world we are stuck in.

It's an issue when it's basically half the price of a new game, except you're paying it for a 14 year old game. It's not even a remake with a new engine, just a small overhaul of the existing engine. And there's plenty of mods out there that have a lot more new content that are free.

By buying this you're not supporting people making this kind of CRPGs, you're supporting the rehashing of old stuff and paying high prices for barely any content (it's no better than most DLC in this respect).
Okay, if you're standing on principal or something, that's cool. It just seemed like a literal money issue based on some comments here, but $20 is what, maybe the price of three fast food lunches? Seems rather negligible if you're already among the game-buying public, particularly for a 'beloved' game like BG. Hell, I'd pay that just as a show of support, even if I never intended to play the game, and I'm by no means Mr. Big Stuff money guy.

What makes this different to BGTutu?

What makes this different to BGTutu?

Not much :).
- You can scroll in and out
- better support of modern machines, better support of multiplayer
- cleaned up coding, which will result in almost non existant loading times between areas
- Many fixes of bugs that were hardcoded and couldn't be fixed by fans
- 3 new NPCs with professional voice acting and art
- some new areas, which by screenshot, I have to admit don't look that gorgeous
- one new arena kind of minigame (which isn't integrated in the main plot; it's rather a minigame of its own)
- a new cinematic
- new player voice sets
- new player portraits

Many of these issues can be realized (or already are) as fan mods but then there's still the difference between amateur - professional kind of quality.

In the end it is still not THAT much to warrant a 18/20 $ price tag, but I personally like the premise of the added content, plus I want to support Trent Oster who eventually will be able to do more awesome stuff with BG2EE if BG1EE is sucessful. I'm not overly hyped that he will, but still, there is the possibility ^^.

It's not a big price jump from the gog digital copy, includes a bunch of content so I don't have to go download/install in the super specific order so as not to ruin all the mods/game/remember what I already installed (since there's about 1000 tweak mods)....

Not to mention how many of my friends couldn't play BG2 (much less BG) because of the graphics (and lack of willingness to mod). Not everyone is willing to spend the time to mod their game. Most people just want to play what's there.

On top of that I'm hoping it's far more stable and easier to install/mod in the future on a modern OS.

Your right, kind of... but this is the test run to see if there is interest in rehashing the old games. If there is enough support, then there is a good possiblity that they can start redoing more titles, with more room to expand/improve/upgrade the games, like BG2, IWD, etc.. Maybe, possibly even moving into the realm of a BG3 or a similar type of game with new content. This quite possibly could be the resurrection of CRPGs that I for one have been looking for. That alone is worth my $18 pre-order buckaroos.... I hate the current MMO world we are stuck in.
Funny. I don't buy it on principle. You buy, but also on principle.

If rehashing is all you want, then this is a great development, I suppose. But rehashing is generally just cashing in and does not lead to original thought. I would not expect this rehashing stuff to lead to anything but rehashing. The whole business model of the guys that are making BG EE is based on remaking old games. In this case, just cashing in on nostalgia with minimum effort.

@omnigodly, if your friends didn't like the orginal games because of graphics, then they won't like this much either. Graphically, not much has changed. And there's a lot of fixes, but there's generally only need to install the one G3Fixpack.

Here's another way of looking at it as well... I have played a TON of mods designed for the BG/IWD series games. All for free. Many have spent a lot of time and effort on these mods. BGEE will put BG back out there, possibly making the modding world a bit easier for today's modder. For $18 I am willing to contribute, for once :), to the modding world.

That's a strange way to support modding.

A bigger public interest may result in more modders being attracted to BG which might bolster the modding community (but probably with largely short-lived interest). But on the other hand, this Overhaul Games studio is also using the community patches that have been available and maintained for years, and are now using it to earn money for themselves. It seems to me that if you want to support modding, donating to the people who are doing the modding is a much better and directer way.

It's also interesting to see that they actually have a volunteering section on their forums. Here's people helping this company to earn money for no reward for themselves. Let's not forget that Overhaul Games is a company and companies are there to make a profit, not for our benefit.

Also, does anyone else here find it somewhat of a stretch of reasoning to assume that buying something from a gamestudio named Overhaul Games will ever lead to any original games? Or even new games?


I'm sounding rather negative here - and I guess I am very cynical about this whole enterprise - so let me just end in saying that I do like that they appear to have added zooming in and out to the game, I always like that kind of functionality. It's just not worth more than maybe 3-5 euro to me.

Well henkie, a lot of the modders are working on this project. That alone will help them mod in the future once BGEE is released. I still play the Black Isle games religiously, so for me, it's a plus. But if you don't play BG that much these days, hey, I see your point. But $18-20 bucks is a drop in the hat, so that doesn't phase me in the least. Plus, how rich can they get off of that? They aren't going to sell a million copies, let alone a 100k copies.

I also think that most of the BG fans really want to see BG2EE redone and possibly the IWD series redone as well. It won't happen if BGEE is not supported and becomes a flop. I don't expect everyone to have my opinion or expectations as not everyone is as interested in the BG series as they used to be. Basically, for me, it's wishful thinking. And I am okay with that.:)

It seems to me that if you want to support modding, donating to the people who are doing the modding is a much better and directer way.
Mods can't profit from the property they're modding. So if you want to donate indirectly to keep a website afloat or something, that's one thing, but no money will ever go into a modder's pocket for modding.

Being as people generally mod games because they love them, financially supporting that game and thus keeping it alive for modders is a nice gesture, and it's about as close to paying them as you're going to get. About all you can really do for modders is support the game, support their website or host, play their mods, and say thanks. :) And though there are always exceptions, most modders don't want anything more than that.

So +1 to Blades :thumb: - unless you're really financially strapped, $20 doesn't seem like such a large amount to contribute toward those ends, at least to me.

Funny. I don't buy it on principle. You buy, but also on principle.

If rehashing is all you want, then this is a great development, I suppose. But rehashing is generally just cashing in and does not lead to original thought. I would not expect this rehashing stuff to lead to anything but rehashing. The whole business model of the guys that are making BG EE is based on remaking old games. In this case, just cashing in on nostalgia with minimum effort.

@omnigodly, if your friends didn't like the orginal games because of graphics, then they won't like this much either. Graphically, not much has changed. And there's a lot of fixes, but there's generally only need to install the one G3Fixpack.

The thing that we have to keep in mind is that there are a sizable number of Baldur's Gate fans that have an unending fascination with this game. Truly, this game is considered by many to be the gold standard for what a CRPGs should be, and fans of the series can be a tad cultish in their devotion to it. From that perspective, I'm betting that an official release that included improved fecal matter graphics in the game and nothing more would actually sell a good number of copies.

I was originally in the "I'll buy anything BG related that you want to give me without a second thought" camp, but one of my big caveats even before BGEE was announced was that it better not be a mobile or console port. Then BGEE was announced and there was no mention of mobile anything, and for a bit I was beside myself with elation that I was going to get something at least as good as improved fecal matter graphics, probably better, and I was ready to pre-order a dozen copies on the spot – I mean, why buy one when you can get 12 for 12 times the cost, right? The logic seemed sound to me, at least.

Then the mobile announcement was made a week or two later, and it became clear that was the primary focus of BGEE. This fact, and how I felt... (okay, I still feel) that I sort of got suckered into getting excited about this release before I had been told the whole story really served to dampen my enthusiasm. So while I fully expect that I will buy the PC version game (hey, I'm one of those cultish diehard fans, after all), my short-lived donning of the "Glasses of Rose Color +1" have since been replaced with my usual "Lenses of the Cynic +5." But even still, I realize that I'm going to be getting plenty more than fecal matter updates to the original BG engine, so I would be hard pressed to say that I'm not going to buy. I'm just waiting, standing on some admittedly odd principle that the whole experience is somewhat tarnished because of the mobile platform component... even if I understand that this was likely a required selling point to get the project off the ground with the number crunchers.

So take that devs! I'm going to buy your BGEE update... but not for a few weeks!! Fear the mighty roar of my hesitation, and weep at the lost potential to earn some extra interest income from my purchase!! :evil:

I am another of those hardcore, churlish BG fans. Just the other day on another forum some of the people mentioned BG and how much they liked it and I found myself feeling very superior to them. I realized I considered them fly by night fans and not true fans. I didn't even bother to respond to the post. I know I am being narrow minded but Baldurs Gate I and II are the gold standard of CRPGs. No other game comes close to it in its entirety. The interrelationship of the members of your party alone are worth the price.

Yes, I will buying the game. I will be playing the game. If they mess it up I will be loudly complaing.

Hey Nakia! You're definitely my kind of gamer!

I somehow picture myself in 30 years, nearly at age 70, still playing the Baldur's Gate Triple Enhanced Edition (or similar) on some antiquated PC sitting next to a neglected modern PC, explaining to my bewildered grandchildren that this is what a computer roleplaying game is supposed to be. Of course, they'll laugh at their out of touch grand dad and happily go back to playing their 4D virtual reality MMORPG, which will no doubt have an unbelievable amount of flash but a questionable amount of soul, and will be powered by an uber powerful mobile device no larger than the size of a quarter.

And of course, I'll still be holding out some small, tiny shred of hope that one day Baldur's Gate 3 will make it to market, but to no avail.

Yes... I can see the future....

Marceror, You will also be coming back to BoM to talk about the game, Tal will be holding fort for all those old hardcore fans. My ghost will mosey by to check out what is happening. All will be well.

Long live the Bhaalspawn! Isn't that right, Boo?

I was going to buy this game when I first heard about it but not anymore. The so called enhancements are simply too few. $20 for three NPCs, one adventure and blurred graphics? Thanks but I will pass. Besides the original game still works like a charm.

I will probably buy it. I always wanted BG1 to be updated and be more like BG2, so for me BGEE sounds like a pretty great update. At least this way I won't have to download TuTu or a widescreen mod. Plus the new npc's sound pretty interesting. One is a monk, the other the new blackguard class, and the last a wild mage. I'm mostly excited for the monk npc. The DLC also sounds like a plus since it'll keep them game alive until BG2EE. I do feel like 20$ is a bit of a stretch for such an old game, but I don't mind supporting the developers.

The thing that we have to keep in mind is that there are a sizable number of Baldur's Gate fans that have an unending fascination with this game. Truly, this game is considered by many to be the gold standard for what a CRPGs should be, and fans of the series can be a tad cultish in their devotion to it.
Well, I wouldn't call myself a fan of anything - my brain just isn't wired that way. So perhaps that's my problem in understanding the reasoning behind people just buying this game.

Erod sums my thoughts on this subject up quite well:
Besides the original game still works like a charm.

Henkie, your post earns you the cynic of the month award! Not a fan of *anything* - that's bloody brilliant.

I think we're starting to zero in on why this is worth it to some but not to others.

Glad to have been of some amusement for you :p

Aside from the fandom thing, I would say there's also the fact the original is enough for some and a remake just doesn't add much.

Most of my cynicism is reserved for the idea that anything good will come of this. Ok, the zoom and higher resolution support is quite nifty, but supporting this in the hope that someday, somewhere you will see a BG3 appear? The story of the BG series is finished, there's no room for a sequel and a prequel wouldn't be nearly as interesting.

At the end of the day, I just want to pay someone $20 for something new(ish) that says Baldur's Gate on it. It's been far too long since I've had the pleasure of doing that. :p

I have to say that I am a little bit peeved at the Dev team right now. I pre-ordered. The "promise" was that those that pre-ordered would receive an e-mail with a link to pre-download the software, making it easy to autoplay on the day of release. They promised it a week or two before the release. Well, it's the 14th, it releases on the 18th and we still have not rec'd the e-mail as of yet. Where I think it won't affect my game in itself as long as it releases on the 18th, I prefer them to keep their word as I feel if someone can't keep their word about one topic, they usually don't about others as well. My Beamdog trust meter just spiraled downward a few points....:confused:

Judging from some comments here and on different boards, the Pre-Download is littered with hardship and wonky servers.

I hope it sorts out for you guys...I want to see some first impression threads.

I will be palying tonight. I will post tomorrow about what I think. Graphics-wise, I could care less, though the wider view is nice I guess. I am more interested in content, dialogue and the new NPCs in general. From the Screenshots Tal posted it looks like Dorn has 14 Con and wields a Two-hander. Kind of makes him like another Shar-Teel. Don't see the need for duplicate-like NPCs. I am looking forward to trying the Monk and Wild-Mage NPCs, as they should be fragile at lower levels and but worth the effort later on. Hopefully they will carry these new NPCs over into BG2:EE.

I'm pretty sure that I won't be buying it.

Hopefully they will carry these new NPCs over into BG2:EE.That's the plan.

Official forums are down currently, probably due to the sudden rush of traffic.

I won't buy it either, at least for now, even if a part of me feels the nostalgia to buy something with "Baldur's Gate" written on it :P

And now I just read above the word "DLC". The total opposite of what the "gaming conception" of Baldur's Gate was. Damn, they are following Bioware's path with that Mass Effect/Dragon Age thing.

I'd never encourage illegal software download, but sometimes software houses just deserve it.

I won't buy it either, at least for now, even if a part of me feels the nostalgia to buy something with "Baldur's Gate" written on it :P

And now I just read above the word "DLC". The total opposite of what the "gaming conception" of Baldur's Gate was. Damn, they are following Bioware's path with that Mass Effect/Dragon Age thing.

I'd never encourage illegal software download, but sometimes software houses just deserve it.

True... 20$ for a updated 15 year old game (most of which updates are free to get anyways) and the few new things are sold extra as dlc? come on...

I didn't pay for any extras yet, just the Enchanced Version. I don't get what you guys are talking about.

So far, I have to say I am pretty impressed. The wider view is excellent, more portrait choices, more NPCs, BG2 Engine, more quests and the menus are a bit different but you adjust right away. The Zoom feature ONLY works with a mouse wheel, they will have to fix that in an update/patch.

There are little touches that are realy nice. I noticed when buying Throwing Axes for Kaigan in Beregost at the Smithy, there was another type of throwing axe that does d6+2 damage for sale. Monty has ** each in Shortswords and Slings, which is fitting for a halfling IMO. The creature placement is nice. When entering the crossroads south of the FAI, I spoke with Elminster and then I wasn't attacked by Xvarts or Gibberlings. So far, I have only encounterd single creatures when finding random creatures in the wilderness. The set encounters of 3 Hobgoblins were still there on the path surrounding the FAI. I created an Evil Skald. Added Monty and Xzar, then Viccy, Kaigan. I want to add Dorn, but he doesn't just join, he tells you to get lost. I will have to see where that goes. There is more, but I don't want to give it all away.

The location of the 3 new NPCs are...

Dorn - Found him in the FAI, but is not joinable, yet. TBD...
Meera the Wild Mage - Beregost, I 'll let you find her...
Rashaad - Nashkel, as soon as you cross the bridge, he is located immediately to the south, surrounded by commoners, teaching them about being a Sun Soul Monk. Very simple dialogue options to get him to join your group.

I bought it, as I have several friends who bought it as well, (they never played the original before) and we intend to try out some multiplayer action before christmas.