Baldurs Gate 2: Shadows of Amn (PC) > Reviews > A worthy sequel to Baldurs Gate

Author's product rating:   

Playability & Enjoyment	Excellent - very playable game
Graphics	Good
Sound	Good - relevant music & effects
Difficulty & Complexity	Average - suitable for most

Advantages:	Epic story, Good replayablity value, Very Good value for money
Disadvantages:	Poor AI, Lots of Bugs

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

Being a fan of the first installment I was eagerly waiting for this game to come out, and I was far from disappointed. For people who don't know Baldurs Gate 1+2 is a Role Playing Game(RPG) based on the rules of Advanced Dungeons and Dragons.

The game itself is massive, it comes with 5 CD's. To complete the game the first time will take around 100 gaming hours. The game picks up about 1 month after the end of the first game, and the good news is that you can import your old character from the first game. You can also create a new character from scratch. You have to pick from many classes and kits which includes mages, fighters, thieves and clerics.

Apart from your main character which you create/import you will get to meet other characters along your journey. Upto 5 characters can join your party. Choosing your party members is one of the most important aspects of the game. You need a balanced party to be able to survive in Baldurs Gate 2. For example, a party without a thief will struggle because the party will not be able to open locks and detect traps. Most of the characters will interact with you main character and create dialogs which I think adds a very nice touch to the game.

The basis of the game is that your characters does quests and kill enemies to gain experience to level up. Levelling up means that your character will gain specail abilities. For example, if one of your character is a thief and he/she levels up they will be able to set traps and will pick locks at a greater success rate.

I'm not going to give away the plot because it will spoil the fun. The story in my opinion is the best thing about the game.

But the game is not perfect by any means. The game is full of bugs which may hinder your progress through the game and even prevent you from completing the game. Black Isle ( the developers of Baldurs Gate 2) have released a patch to fix the bugs, but unfortunately there are a few that they failed to iron out.

Another problem is that the AI doesn't seem to good. Some enemies seem to be easily defeated. For example, Dragons in the Baldurs Gate 2, In D&D dragons are near impossible to defeat.

Overall I thouroughly enjoyed this game. I've already completed it twice using different classes and characters. The number of classes and kits available adds longetivity and replayablitiy to the game.