When I first heard about BG EE I, like all old-school RPG fans, was pretty excited about it. The excitement waned considerably when it became clear that it was just a port, not an extended adventure. So I didn't bother with it for PC.
Eventually I got an ipad for work, and soon after found I was going overseas for a few weeks. I loved BG and I figured there would surely be times during the trip I needed a little mental relaxation so I bought the game right before I left.
After completing almost all of it on the trip (I only have the final catacombs and Durlag's Tower to go) a few thoughts stand out for me:
1) BG is LONG. My memory on just how long had faded but the game is absolutely massive. Often I would grab the pad before falling asleep and spend a few hours clearing two, or maybe three, tiles. I think if you're playing it for the first time and you do absolutely everything there is to do it would have to clock in at 100 hours at the least.
2) What a great, involving storyline. One of the best, imho. Even remembering quite a few of the various twists and turns it still grabs me all of these years later.
3) I think I was a bit too harsh in my initial reaction when I found about the publisher's intentions. Yes, it is pretty much a straight port, but playing BG on a tablet with touch controls is much cooler than I had imagined. It doesn't matter where you are: the couch, the bed, on a train etc. - just grab it, hit the icon, and you're back in your game in two seconds. No saving necessary if your only intent is to stop playing.
I think that if you own an ipad and you love these types of older RPGs it's worth buying.
The bad?
1) They really missed the boat on a feature that could have made playing SO much easier. A button highlights all of the interactive objects on the screen, but only as long as you hold it, and selecting individual party members, NPCs, and enemies is a hit or miss affair. If the programmers had taken one more step and perhaps allowed the interaction button to draw a box around every character on the screen during a pause it probably would have eliminated 90% of the frustration I encountered during hectic battles. The next time I carefully select one of my characters and target an enemy only to watch them run up and stand there taking a beating instead of doing what they were suppose to I'll reach through the screen and strangle them myself.
Selecting the proper dialogue is a chore unto itself as well, and I had to load up an old save several times because I accidentally hit the wrong answer.
2) I didn't really expect it to be fixed, so I'm just musing a bit: How were those pathfinding issues ever acceptable to us, even back then? I'm sure streamlining them wasn't possible, but couldn't anything have been done to avoid some of the most egregious errors? I was fighting one of those mage battles on the ice island, and I escaped by a hair. When I tried to save I realized the battle wasn't over: one of my party members had wandered to the far side of the dungeon where they were being attacked by ice wolves, or something. Of course - they died. Just a simple "battle area" border that stops characters when they meander too far away would have been greatly appreciated.
The worst?
I bought the "Extended Edition", not the regular version of BG. Trying out the new characters was something I was looking forward to. Imagine my surprise when I realized that the new characters were not included. Even though you think you're getting it all, you're really not.
I know, I know - some will say "it's your own fault for not checking it out". Who thinks to check out something like that?
Funny aside - I was bored on the plane ride so I got the ipad out to try a bit of the game. I had never seen the new intro videos, and after Sarevok breaks the guys throat and throws him over the side of the building in a heap of blood I glanced over at the older lady sitting next to me. She was looking at the screen with an expression of absolute horror. Thankfully the game itself isn't quite as graphic or she may have had a seizure.
Maybe I should have gotten out my laptop and started up FEAR lol.
Eventually I got an ipad for work, and soon after found I was going overseas for a few weeks. I loved BG and I figured there would surely be times during the trip I needed a little mental relaxation so I bought the game right before I left.
After completing almost all of it on the trip (I only have the final catacombs and Durlag's Tower to go) a few thoughts stand out for me:
1) BG is LONG. My memory on just how long had faded but the game is absolutely massive. Often I would grab the pad before falling asleep and spend a few hours clearing two, or maybe three, tiles. I think if you're playing it for the first time and you do absolutely everything there is to do it would have to clock in at 100 hours at the least.
2) What a great, involving storyline. One of the best, imho. Even remembering quite a few of the various twists and turns it still grabs me all of these years later.
3) I think I was a bit too harsh in my initial reaction when I found about the publisher's intentions. Yes, it is pretty much a straight port, but playing BG on a tablet with touch controls is much cooler than I had imagined. It doesn't matter where you are: the couch, the bed, on a train etc. - just grab it, hit the icon, and you're back in your game in two seconds. No saving necessary if your only intent is to stop playing.
I think that if you own an ipad and you love these types of older RPGs it's worth buying.
The bad?
1) They really missed the boat on a feature that could have made playing SO much easier. A button highlights all of the interactive objects on the screen, but only as long as you hold it, and selecting individual party members, NPCs, and enemies is a hit or miss affair. If the programmers had taken one more step and perhaps allowed the interaction button to draw a box around every character on the screen during a pause it probably would have eliminated 90% of the frustration I encountered during hectic battles. The next time I carefully select one of my characters and target an enemy only to watch them run up and stand there taking a beating instead of doing what they were suppose to I'll reach through the screen and strangle them myself.
Selecting the proper dialogue is a chore unto itself as well, and I had to load up an old save several times because I accidentally hit the wrong answer.
2) I didn't really expect it to be fixed, so I'm just musing a bit: How were those pathfinding issues ever acceptable to us, even back then? I'm sure streamlining them wasn't possible, but couldn't anything have been done to avoid some of the most egregious errors? I was fighting one of those mage battles on the ice island, and I escaped by a hair. When I tried to save I realized the battle wasn't over: one of my party members had wandered to the far side of the dungeon where they were being attacked by ice wolves, or something. Of course - they died. Just a simple "battle area" border that stops characters when they meander too far away would have been greatly appreciated.
The worst?
I bought the "Extended Edition", not the regular version of BG. Trying out the new characters was something I was looking forward to. Imagine my surprise when I realized that the new characters were not included. Even though you think you're getting it all, you're really not.
I know, I know - some will say "it's your own fault for not checking it out". Who thinks to check out something like that?
Funny aside - I was bored on the plane ride so I got the ipad out to try a bit of the game. I had never seen the new intro videos, and after Sarevok breaks the guys throat and throws him over the side of the building in a heap of blood I glanced over at the older lady sitting next to me. She was looking at the screen with an expression of absolute horror. Thankfully the game itself isn't quite as graphic or she may have had a seizure.
Maybe I should have gotten out my laptop and started up FEAR lol.
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