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First of all, this is a game from 2004. It is the successor to the original Balder's Gate game from two years earlier. BG 2 - Dark Alliance is an improvement in several ways. The visual graphic concepts have greatly improved from the original. Lots more detail, and character movement is faster and more precise. Also improved, is the AI (Artificial Intelligence) of the enemies you confront. You will have to create strategies and tactics to succeed in this game. No longer, can you make real progress by doing just a smash and bash attack. If you have a bit of patience and enjoy a good RPG, then this is a game for you. Just don't expect any Skyrim type of production values. This was a game for original Xbox and PlayStation 2 consoles. It was good when you consider it was made about 14 years ago! Read full review
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
Having been a paper and pencil D&D player in my youth, I was hoping that this electronic version of the D&D universe would live up to its reputation. I am proud to say that it exceeds standards set for the D&D name and reputation. Gameplay: Top-down, slightly angled view. There are great variety of enemies with multiple levels of difficulty - None too difficult to defeat, but none too easy either. Combat is handled hack-and-slash style. Leveling up can be automatic or customized with a large number of items to vary your character's skills. Weapons are too numerous to mention. Just pay attention to what you can buy or find. There might just be an item that is priceless in there! Stones or runes can be used to augment your equipment, so keep an eye out for those - it's always good to increase the effectiveness of your equipment...especially for boss characters! The areas of exploration are many and HUGE! The overall storyline is well written and executed as to keep the gamer entranced throughout. Graphics: A large variety of environments with a high level of detail within each. Make sure you look at your map closely, as you may just miss that trap door to the room with much treasure inside! Sound: Top-notch. The usual combat sounds are included along with voice work and music completing this title. Replay Value: Based upon the portion I have played in my first playthough, I will definitely be back for a second and possibly third playthrough. There's just so much detail in the game that one will inevitably miss something each play-through. Overall: Anyone wanting a gameplay adventure worth its weight will want to play Bauldur's Gate: Dark Alliance II.Read full review
This is an older role playing video game, but I wanted to purchase it because it is one of the only role playing games where you can play with another person. The playing action is NOT split screen. It is a third person "birds-eye view" of the action. The battles are realistic and the story lines are good for all the characters. There are five characters plus some others that may be able to be unlocked later in the game. I also like how you are able to build your character. As your character gains more experience you can choose attributes and abilities that will help your character when fighting or completing other tasks. It gives the player control of "making" the character. You can also add characters in other games at any time. So, if my son has a character in a different part of the game and I want to join him and play with my character...I can import my character into his game. Some of the other things that I like about it are: -Unlimited arrows, and ranged weapons...no money wasted on buying arrows. -Shared money. -Characters specialize in different areas. -Making and enchanting weapons. In short, this is one of the best games and platforms in this type of gaming genre. You will not be disappointed in this older but in many ways better game.Read full review
I finally try this sequel eight years after its release and I have to say I am enjoying it more than anything else right now. Not too simple nor too complex. The graphics are still top-notch in 2012 and overall a terrific expansion of the first Baldur's Gate. I understand some gamers get through this pick-up adventure in about 10 hours, however, if you are methodical and curious(or indecisive)then it could take you 20 hours or more. The workshop within the town's shop is a whole different game in itself and you have access to it all but the start of the game. Math skills, along with inventory control and profit awareness are helpful to succeed in the difficult modes without saving often. In criticism..some of the quests do involve running for your life while trying to heal yourself, which is not my preference for stress relief. ALSO: Because the final act is rather rushed it may have you creating your ultimate weapon with only a few minutes of battle left! With five different quest-driven characters to choose from, along with two unlockables, replays are a given. The automap is good and spell cycling is tricky but satifying. I would say knowing the adventure beforehand is a big advantage but not necessarily less frustrating. In terms of game addiction this one is pretty high on the chart so I suppose take caution.Read full review
I never owned an Xbox and my wife and I just played through the first Dark Alliance on the Gamecube and loved it. So when I had the chance to pick up the sequel for our Xbox 360 (yay, backwards compatibility!), I jumped on it. GREAT: The selection of character classes is fantastic, with a ton more visual and gameplay variety than the last game. Armor looks different on every player. The visuals are better than ever, with far more realistic environments then the previous game (doesn't look like tiles anymore). NPC appearance is better, no longer do all female characters basically look the same. Each quest is huge and you can explore many of them in an order that you choose. The game's difficulty is more challenging but not too hard. They trimmed away some of the unneeded grind with the first game, like having to buy arrows. The new spell hot-button setup works great! Having 5 spells at your fingertips is really great, especially for classes like the Necromancer and the Cleric. NOT SO GREAT: The performance on the Xbox 360 is surprisingly poor. Everything seems fine until the screen has more than 5 characters on it. And seriously, it's like an on/off switch, the game suddenly goes into slow-motion. Not like... jerky or anything. Just slow. In a way, this "Bullet Time" effect can make things easier, especially if there's a lot of shooting enemies on the screen, but in some situations (like in town) it's just tedious. The class balances don't feel totally fair. For instance, the Cleric starts out with a very powerful melee-ranged explosion spell and a self / party heal spell, in addition to having good melee survivability. Meanwhile the rogue's ranged attacks are weak and he has very little utility early on. If you're playing with a friend and are able to make these direct comparisons, one player can begin to feel a little useless, making it less fun. Town, while there's more places to go, surprisingly looks more bland than the last game. The merchant is hard to find at first, and doesn't even have a shop. He's just a man in the street and it looks stupid. MEH: Crafting system seems to be much-ado-about-nothing. I ignore it. Would've loved to see up to 4 players. With 5 characters, it seems stupid to only allow 2. I play this kind of game for the gameplay, especially co-op, not the story. While the story isn't "bad", it's very, very "standard" as far is fantasy stories go. Evil bad guy, monsters, save the world... nothing new here. None of the villains are especially compelling... so far.Read full review
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