Baldur's Gate Beamdog's Baldur's Gate 1 & 2 Enhanced Editions

[Shadenuat]

Well, my veridict for BGEE - UI is ugly, hurts my eyes and very alienating (why the changes for spellbooks for examples or why put gold at the center of inventory I have no idea); everything is fucking tiny, from portraits to items and spell icons; most of the features are purely cosmetic and there was't any need to create the whole "enhanced edition" for them (like circles around characters are now the color their clothes are... wat?); new characters are... level above fanmade characters, I guess - from technical standpoint. The arena... I don't care for, new items... there are some, but I'm not really interested in items. Some stuff is not bad - the zooming option. New Gorion blasts enemies into ashes by high level spells which is a neat addo.
Everything else... I don't care, I'd better play 800*600 TuTu, just with normal spawning rates.
Also, there are typos, missed commas, and at least one graphical glitch - water in new location looks the same as in TuTu without "tutu degreenifier".

All is shit.

Hmm, doesn't it depend on level of character being raised? I don't remember.

I remember scrapping gold for raising someone in the beginning in TuTu. Pretty sure it has to be around 600 gp.

 

[Infinitron]

What level was that someone? Also, the cost might vary by temple.

 

[Shadenuat]

Level one too.
Temple in Nashkel, and my reputation was 6 because I took new half-orc in.

 

[Infinitron]

@shadenaut Thread from 2010 http://af.gog.com/forum/baldurs_gate_series/reviving_party_members?as=1649904300

You can go to a temple and have the priest there cast Raise Dead on the corpse. There is a temple right there in the Friendly Arm Inn. It will cost you 100g for this service.

 

[Shadenuat]

Yea it's probably TuTu which did it differently. I just checked on my GoG BG1 and it's 100 gp for level 1 character, and 1000 for high level character.

Anyway some good stuff about BGEE - loadings and quick saves are absolutely instant.
The bad stuff, after I took the flutegirl, I ran into another bug - game did't allow me to save anymore. I walked around world map but still no saves for me.

Those .TLK files, are they uploaded anywhere?
I'd like to run Infinity Explorer and see what is inside.

The IE says there is no Infinity game in BGEE game folder, or that there is no .ini file to be open. Well kinda obvious, stuff packed other way, tlk files in different folders, some stuff merged together probably, etc. Whatever; modders will answer better on what to do with that.

 

[gunman]

Guy on their forum found the reason behind the crashes, it's the x86 architecture:

Vanne Posts: 1
11:53AM
That's the problem with x86, so many variants with drivers and hardware and throw in there some anti virus solution and your average peecee is a bomb waiting to explode.



It's clear they bit more than they could chew. It seem that even porting the old sources (probably written in VC6) over the new compiler and libs was 90% successful. I guess most of these issues will be fixed in upcoming patches, but it's quite an embarrassment what is happening now.

 

[wormix]

Those .TLK files, are they uploaded anywhere?
I'd like to run Infinity Explorer and see what is inside.

The IE says there is no Infinity game in BGEE game folder, or that there is no .ini file to be open. Well kinda obvious, stuff packed other way, tlk files in different folders, some stuff merged together probably, etc. Whatever modders will answer better on what to do with that.

What about with http://sourceforge.net/projects/nearinfinity/ ?

 

[Infinitron]

That dastardly x86 architecture

 

[hoverdog]

oh boy, I obviously expected failure with sort of fourth-rate programmers and staff Oster has (himself included)

but seriously, that kind of a major fuckup? that car crash? this is beyond my wildest imaginations. it's the stuff dreams are made of.

 

[wormix]

So they actually did manage to enhance one thing: the bugs.

 

[mediocrepoet]

Half the part of wonderfull nostalgic chills I get from BG1 is from intro when Sarevok lifts his finger clad in that plate armour with a sound of metal scratching the glass, and intro slowly unfading from the pool of blood and burning.

For me the highlight of the original intro was the blood trickling through the cobblestones and then the camera pulling back to the game title shot. It's telling that the new intro completely misses the boat on that and just has the giant blob-pool of blood spreading around the guy in a perfect circle.

So the fans are having issues with the product so far, but the reviews from "professional gaming journalists" have been pretty positive: http://www.rpgwatch.com/#21021

How can there be such a disconnect?

Now you know where their budget went. Sounds like it didn't go into the coding...

 

[Shadenuat]

What about with http://sourceforge.net/projects/nearinfinity/ ?

Don't remember how to use that stuff sorry

So they actually did manage to enhance one thing: the bugs.

Infinity games are the most stable games I ever had on my PC, and BG is the number one of most stable of them (unlike, say PST). I ran BG on Win 95, 98, XP, ME and now I easely run my BG from 10 years old CD or GoG version no problem on Windows 7. There is nothing to enhance!
I ran no-CDed infinity games with CDs copied onto hard-drive after re-installing Windows, and installing new Windows - just by updating regedit... but PST actually ran even without it.
The only game which is more stable than BG for me is probably Alpha Centauri, which just runs even from old folder no matter when, how, what system or mode you run Win in.

The fact that I had to install additional sound library to run BGEE and there are bugs in the game is mindblowing to me. I mean, you heard me - Infinitron says - NO IT COSTS 100 GP. I go and run GoG version of BG1 (a wonderful BG build by the way, GOGs BG just installs for few minutes and plays... out of the "box").

So why the in the Nine Hells... maybe the most important for them is BGEE running on PHONES, huh?
Grrr.

 

[Infinitron]

Now you know where their budget went. Sounds like it didn't go into the coding...

Eh, no need, hipsters gonna hipster.

 

[~RAGING BONER~]

loving the new romances and graphical/story improvements...can't wait to see what they'll do to BG2.

 

[Grunker]

loving the new romances and graphical/story improvements...can't wait to see what they'll do to BG2.

 

[Shadenuat]

I'd play flute with wildmage girl and orc, and roam new locations and search for items, but only with the old 800*600 UI. I hope modders will "fix that". Maybe I should already send a request.

 

[Jaesun]

Where do you find the 2 new NPC's? At the start of the game?

 

[Shadenuat]

The Orc: He sits in Friendly Arm Inn but does't join. After I talked to him, I went south, and somewhere inbetween Nashkel and Mines a random encounter occured, where you can get him.
The Monk: Nashkel in front of inn.
Is It Flute Time Yet?: Beregost, north of map. Edwin will comment on her, and he leaves when you get her.

 

[zodden]

I have had no issues running the game. What I like so far? The new UI and the new quest-log. I am liking the new companions as well. If you get all three and do their quests I read its about 12 hours of new content. The new spell animations are also pretty good. I would have liked them to add some more graphic options-the only option is full screen. Its a minor complaint.

I like the old intro better but that's also minor. The other cut scenes so far have looked pretty good.

I don't know if its worth $20 but its certainly worth some where in between the GOG price and its current $20. (Maybe $15)

I installed the BG2 Tweaks pack as its compatible and necessary.

 

[Malpercio]

Question: Did the enhance the old NPC too? Because otherwise, the difference between the old content and the new one will be pretty obvious. (also, my main problem with BG1 was how little the party develop compared to 2 :/)

 

[~RAGING BONER~]

^ the logic is: if you have new content, why bother with the old lol?

 

[SwiftCrack]

Gay romances of peace.

 

[lupus_solitarius]

Question: Did the enhance the old NPC too? Because otherwise, the difference between the old content and the new one will be pretty obvious. (also, my main problem with BG1 was how little the party develop compared to 2 :/)

No, they didn't, and yes, the difference is pretty jarring. It's actually one of the areas in the original that could have used some enhancing, but apparently the various licensing parties (WotC and Bioware?) have forbidden them from touching the original content. Of course there's the BG1NPC mod, but writing in that is just horrible... not that Beamdog's efforts are much better from what I've seen so far.

 

[Shadenuat]

Ankheg plate mail
Not usable by:
DRUID

 

[SwiftCrack]

Could you equip it though? In the original BG1 Ankheg plate was not usable by Druids either according to the tooltip, but you could equip it.