Different Game Everytime

Baldur's Gate has been heralded as one of the best RPGs available on the PC today, and it has surely earned it's title. Baldur's Gate is set in the realm of Waterdeep, an area well known to AD&D RPGers. It's a town with everything and anything, and quite a few little problems cropping up. The basic storyline has the you (the main character) having to run from your home in Candlekeep. During your escape though your foster father murdered in the woods beyond, and you discover that it was you they are after. You set off on a quest to find out who wants you dead and why.

The game uses most of the rules and roll methods of Advanced Dungeons and Dragons 2nd Edition. And like the epic real-life RPG it's based on, Baldur's Gate gives every player a unique experience everytime they play, with the choices made able to truly effect the game play.

The only "required" storyline is of course the aspects that advance you through the seven chapters of the story to the end when you discover who you are and why someone wants you dead (and of course avenge your father). Beyond that, everything is your choice, with over 100 subquests and plots open for you to slide yourself into.

Starting the game takes a little time, especially for anyone who has not played a real RPG (you know, the ones you play in gaming stores with a bunch of friends while eating take-out Chinese and drinking tons of soda, while surrounded by source books). I have had such experience, so character generation took me only a three minutes or so, while my brother took about six minutes by just clicking through most areas (though he had no RPG experience).

All in all you get to customize your player in the areas of gender, race, class, alignment, abilities, weapons proficiencies, appearance and of course name. If your character is a magical being, such as a mage, you customize your starting spells as well, while rangers get to pick their racial enemy.

Despite the huge number of choices for character generation, most new players should have little problem making their choices. The on-screen descriptions are through and give a good overview of how your choices might effect the world around you. The instruction book it comes with also gives some extra information and a few charts if you are feeling unsure.

The interface of Baldur's Gate is simple to use with nearly every aspect having a descriptive that appears when you leave the mouse over if for a moment. The only thing it doesn't tell you is to right click on items on the inventory and spell screens to get a full description of them. Candlekeep provides plenty of learning opportunities, though, for players to get the hang of how things like combat, items and talking works.

Baldur's Gate also allows the user to be as good or as evil as they desire. I played as a fairly good player my first round, retrieving lost items and bodies for those asking my aid, running favors and being nice until it was time to not be nice. My brother, on the other hand, went through the game slaughtering everything in his path. By the last level we both had our party at levels 7 and 8. There is a caveat to beware though, if you choose the evil route. The last chapter of the game can not be completed if you kill everyone in Baldur's Gate and if your reputation gets below 6 you'll have to deal with Flaming Fist soldiers attacking you at every turn!

Without a doubt this is the best game I've ever played in the PC releases. It's certainly the only game to hold my attention from beginning to end and to keep me hopelessly playing every day until I had beaten it. As soon as I hit Chapter 7 I had Baldur's Gate II ordered from Amazon and I can't wait to get started with the second (and final) part of this epic tale.