Baldur’s Gate I & II

Baldur’s Gate andĀ Baldur’s GateII: Enhanced Edition are the remakes of the 1998 RPG Baldur’s Gate and its 1999 expansion pack Tales of the Sword Coast, and the sequel Baldur’s Gate II. Baldur’s Gate is a party-based game, with a lot of character interaction including romances, and extensive character customisation based on AD&D 2nd edition rules.

You don’t need to know Dungeons & Dragons to play and enjoy this game, nor do you need to be a hardcore RPG player, however a bit of reading up on THAC0 will help. Combat is pausable real-time, which means that as the game progresses, you may have to consider party combat strategies and tactics. Baldur’s Gate is involved and has a lot of depth, but it isn’t overly complex and the learning curve is worth it. There are plenty of side quests, spells, armour, weapons etc: it’s as fully featured as an RPG can get without delving into crafting and similar.

I first played Baldur’s Gate on a tangerine clamshell iMac, using Newsgroups for hints/cheats/clues. These days there’s a wealth of online walkthroughs and guides available.

Links:

BG – iTunes
BGII – iTunes
Baldur’s Gate Wikia
Official forums