Rating: 
Summary: Excellent Tabletop Adaptation, but Better Fare on the Way
Review: If you're looking for the best software adaptaion of AD&D currently in stores, look no further! Baldur's Gate is by far the most comprehensive and detailed translation of the classic tabletop game to hit shelves. From character creation to monster generation, it never misses a beat. On top of that, the user interface is fluid, natural, and makes game play 'fair' to the user trying to be six people at once.However, if you want the BEST adaptaion, I recommend saving your money and waiting for the upcoming release of Baldur's Gate II! This will feature improved character generation (with more classes and subclasses), larger quantity and variety of monsters, improved graphics, and other various engine tweaks. Plainly put, as great as Baldur's Gate is, I don't recommend spending more than twenty dollars on a game that's going to be eclipsed in a few months. Save your money for the new and improved!
Rating: 
Summary: AD&D rises from the ashes!
Review: Hey, I remember the old gold-laden boxes for the first AD&D games by SSI back when the C64 was still a great computer, and I'm here to tell you, this is a vast improvment! Overall the game is well drawn with decent sound and standard voice acting. Many elements of the pencil and paper game a found here, with some annoying omissions that will be fixed in the next installment. These were the low experience cap and inability to distribute weapon slots towards two-weapon style, to name a couple. At any rate, the game is LOADED with sub-quests and days of good solid gameplay. Black Isle is on a roll.
Rating:
Summary: Balder's Gate is a winner
Review: There is little I can say that hasn't been said about this game in other reviews. But I can say that before this game I was a casual RPG player, now I am addicted. Of course there are a few problems with the game and story telling can never be as detailed and emersive as having a real person as a DM (I would guess I never played AD&D, this game kind of makes me wish I had) But all in all this game is the prototype for the next wave of RPGs. Bottom line: If you like RPGs get this I doubt you'll be disappointed.
Rating:
Summary: Finally, a faithful yet fun adaptation of AD&D
Review: Baldur's Gate is the first great AD&D game for the computer to come along since the Gold Box games from SSI. (I didn't really enjoy the Eye of the Beholder series.) This translation to the world of computer gaming is the most faithful yet, disallowing such Gold Box quirks as spellcasting while armored. Fortunately, Bioware did make some changes in the interest of gameplay balance. For example, Cure Light Wounds always heals 8 hp, not just d8 -- a boon since you begin at level 1 and have many battles to get through. The emphasis is definitely on adventuring and combat; the story is acceptable at best. (The ending is particularly non-spectacular.) With respect to combat, some abilities do seem overpowered. In particular, Baldur's Gate imposes none of the penalties on archery that a good DM would: you can continue to rain arrows upon an enemy engaged in melee with you, and you can fire into melees without ever hitting anyone besides your intended target. A friend of mine used the Sanctuary spell to disgusting effect: while the enemies stand around pointedly "ignoring" the enchanted priest, the other party members rain death upon them. Also somewhat jarring are the NPCs who initiate conversations with you even while invisible or hidden (to prevent the player from "breaking" the plot). But playing Baldur's Gate can be an immensely fun experience. Frankly, this is what AD&D is meant to be, translated on to your computer screen. You explore, meet deadly monsters and quirky NPCs, gain in power and magic, find neat magical weaponry and people to join your party. Some advice: - Don't get hung up on "maxing" out your characters. Unless you enjoy being a munchkin, just have fun and do what your character would do. I found myself trying too hard to win battles without using any of my wand charges or potions, adding to my frustration and leaving me with unused wands and potions at the end of the game. - You don't need to keep all the letters and notes you find. The important ones end with, "(This looks important. You should hang on to it.)" This is important because a single letter or gem takes the same amount of space as a suit of plate mail or an Ankheg carcass. - Summoned monsters are very useful, and don't feel as cheap as exploiting Sanctuary or archery. - If you're having trouble with the Warrior Skeletons (heh), the newest patch purports to weaken them a bit.
Rating:
Summary: BEST AD&D EVER KILLS DIABLO
Review: This is the best game I've ever played on my computer. The only thing that I can see even comes close to eat is Age Of Empires II. The game begins innocently in a monastery but the plot gets so involved this game took me 100 hours to beat and it's the 3rd best RPG I've ever played. I thought Xenogears and Final Fantasy Tactics were a little better and their plots were more thought provoking but Baldur's still has a great plot. This is a lot better than that Diablo Blizzard developed. The ability to go into towns and take them over by force with Drizzt is something no other game has either. The police are a great addition too. The ability to go back through the game as a different class gives this game almost unlimited replayability. All in all, pass up Diablo and Diablo II and get this and Baldur's Gate II
Rating:
Summary: Great Game
Review: This is one of the best RPGs to come around in a long, long time. The story is great, and of coarse, its AD&D, which is the most popular pen and paper RPG ever. The character creating process is pretty good. My only problem is I want to be higher level. I highly recommend this game. If BG2 is going to be even somewhat better than this game, Diablo II really won't even have a chance at RPG of the Year awards.
Rating:
Summary: Forever gaming...
Review: Baldur's Gate & Baldur's Gate, Tales of the Sword Coast have provided continuous entertainment for me for FOUR months now. After completing the game the first time, I decided to start over using different character traits and alignments. Guess what? I'm just about done and I plan to PLAY AGAIN until Baldur's Gate II comes out. These are probably the best computer games I have ever played. I have bought LOTS of others, and don't even play for 5 minutes until I am either bored, or frustrated. If you are looking for a great role playing game that can be played alone, or with others, Baldur's Gate is it!
Rating:
Summary: I'm hooked!
Review: I grew up playing Infocom's text-only adventures (anybody remember the original Zork?) and lamented that none of my friends were the least bit interested in learning how to play RPGs like AD&D. So I am thrilled that technology has finally allowed something like Baldur's Gate to fill that void in my life--with gorgeous graphics, no less. I liked Rage of Mages, limited though it was, and I thoroughly enjoyed Ultima Online until it became overpopulated with a bunch of mindless PKs. The playability of BG just blows them away. The game came with our new PC a couple of days ago, and I haven't gotten much of anything done (y'know, like sleep) because I keep going back to the game. Like I said, I've had a lot more experience with text-based games and MUDs, so it took me a bit to get used to the combat mode. I'm just glad it lets you pause and think through a strategy--especially when your party gets up to 6 characters. But the training in Candlekeep helps a lot, I think, and overall, the interface is quite intuitive.
Rating:
Summary: Hard at first
Review: I loved the story and the looks of this game. The only flaw I've found is that it is a VERY hard game when you start out. Once you get up a level or two, though it evens out and becomes a very engaging game.
Rating: 
Summary: Average game for it's genre.
Review: Graphics are okay for its time, and character development is okay. One small problem. Over-emphasis on hack and slash, and horrid problems with using spells in combat. Also, being stuck at leveling to such a low level bites.
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