Poll: Who is going to buy BG:EE at time of release

Remove all ads!

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.

 

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.

 

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

 

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!!

 

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.

 

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:

 

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

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.

 

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....

 

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.