Have you read this review? Strange guy...

Rrrright. Baldurs Gate was complex?? It's one of the easiest navigatible games ever, once you get the hang of it. Seems to me he just gave up after 5 minutes... And I don't think I ever needed the Instruction Manual to learn how to play. I only ever read it because of the funny sidenotes from Elminster and Volo, to be honest. :D

"hopelessly complex, tedious, and design flawed to play it."
oh my god! This guy hasnt got a clue.

"Maybe I have an intelligence problem..."
Got it in one.

"Try Arcanum, the whole AD&D theme was done worlds better than Baldurs Gate 2"
Umm if i remember right arcanum had nothing to do with AD&D rules.

"I was getting more critical hits than average hits, and the majority of the time my party members kept missing along with me while the computer seemed to magically assault me mercilessly with incredible accuracy"
He obiviosly has no understanding of d&d, ever heard of THAC0?. He seems not to have bothered even leveling his chars up. Does he expect your chars to be a god straight out and cut through hordes of monsters? This isnt diablo.

"A lot of the little catch 22's about the gameplay in this game, weren't covered in the instruction booklet or hidden among other sections that have no buisness covering the topic."
Does anyone have any idea what hes on about, i never used the manual to play when i first started playing way back in the days of bg1. He sounds like hes just bagging bg2 even though he didnt play it for 5 seconds because it isnt Arcanum.

[ 10-29-2002, 06:33 AM: Message edited by: dragon_lord ]

I can kinda understand everything, but this:
"Windows, windows, everywhere! Shuffling, disappearing, reappearing, going and coming, coming when it's supposed to go. Was it necessary? Could it have been done better?"
What game does he play? What windows?

"I should've taken a clue by the instruction booklet, which has more pages than some of my college textbooks. Anybody thinking of making a game like this should consider the fact that if a game takes that much to cover the absolute basics, it doesn't need to exist."
Absolute basics? There is few things non-mentioned in manual. And he obviously never played PnP (or his college textbook has ten pages :D )

Heh, I guess he never found out how to use the spacebar.

What college did this guy go to? If he thinks BGII is to complex, I would hate to see his entry level english marks. I had the interface figured out and customized 1 hr into the game and had no book or prior BG experience for help. This guy should stick with pong and pac-man. Of course the joystick may offer him quite a challenge.

I wanted to replay to his remarks but did not think it worth the effort to register on the site. If anyone does, give him a few shots for me.

Indeed, if the bg2 manual is bigger than his college books that i would be worried. My year 11 Chemistry book alone is about 10 times as big.

Indeed, if the bg2 manual is bigger than his college books that i would be worried. My year 11 Chemistry book alone is about 10 times as big.</font>[/QUOTE]Ive seen *reading lists* bigger than the BG2 manual. Admittedly not all mandatory reading, but still. And I never read the "how to play" section either. I hate reading instructions so much I prefer to learn things the hard way.

As for the windows, I suppose he could mean the spellbook and invertory windows, but if hes trying to use those in combat hes obviously missed the point.

I love thick game manuals, period. If a person asked me right now which game manual is the best I have seen so far, my answer will be swift and without doubt, Homeworld.

Fans of Homeworld will understand why I like the game manual. It was so informative, and it was actually entertaining to read to the point that it was engrossing. [img]smile.gif[/img] Everything was explained in a form of storytelling so that it was easier to understand what they are trying to say.

I dread game manuals that are as thin, if not thinner, as a piece of tissue paper. To me, it is a sign that the game producers did not put in a lot of effort in the game. There are a few exceptions, but this is what I generally feel.

It is my desire that all games should either have game manuals in the same spirit of Homeworld, or have .pdf manuals for the gamer to print out if it is too thick( as some flight combat sims have done).

On to the review. [img]tongue.gif[/img]

I cringed at some parts, as it seemed to me that he did not bother to try and understand how the game works. The very fact that he associated Arcanum with AD&D indicates he has extremely limited knowledge of how AD&D works.

Maybe he thought high numbers are always better, "Hey look! This Leather Armor gives me better AC than the Splint Mail! WooHoo!"; or perhaps he was equipping his party members with weapons that they are not proficient in( you may laugh, but I have seen other people commit the same error).

Note: This is an assumption on my part. I personally hope it is not true. ;)

I for one, cannot see how can one have difficulty in Jon Irenicus' Dungeon unless you have installed some mods, or are attempting to solo with one character.

Baldur's Gate 2 IS complex, but not to the point where it is hopelessly confusing. In fact, it is the complexity, and the amazing depth of the game that compels me to continue playing it. It is the complexity that enables me to discover new things even today.

I ENJOY complex games. The key point here is how the game handles the complexity. For example, you do not need to roll dice; the game does it for you. All you need to know is whether higher or lower is better, and act accordingly. However, if you want to go further, you can examine every possible combination and discover that crucial breakpoint, or that ultimate combination.

Baldur's Gate 2 caters to all kinds of gamers. All you need is a <u>passion for roleplaying</u>, and a basic understanding of language and mathematics.

[ 10-29-2002, 09:48 AM: Message edited by: Dundee Slaytern ]

[img]graemlins/firedevil.gif[/img] Notice the score the readers gave his review [img]graemlins/firedevil.gif[/img]