Baldur's Gate: Siege of Dragonspear

 PC
  • Publisher: Beamdog
  • Release Date: Mar 31, 2016
User Score
3.8

Generally unfavorable reviews- based on 577 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 194 out of 577
  2. Mixed: 30 out of 577
  3. Negative: 353 out of 577

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  1. tyr8338
    Oct 20, 2022
    7
    It`s a descent enough expansion to beloved game series but it isn`t nowhere as good as main entries in the series.

    +nice graphics +good voiceacting +good amout of conent at very low price +pretty epic at times with big battles -story while beign pretty interesting at its core gets trivialized quite often by bad,ifantile dialogue writing (more then once I felt writing was out of    It`s a descent enough expansion to beloved game series but it isn`t nowhere as good as main entries in the series.

    +nice graphics
    +good voiceacting
    +good amout of conent at very low price
    +pretty epic at times with big battles

    -story while beign pretty interesting at its core gets trivialized quite often by bad,ifantile dialogue writing (more then once I felt writing was out of character and didnt fit in baldurs gate game).    … Expand
  2. Bizancio_Askatu
    Aug 6, 2022
    4
    If you plan to make a sequel of one of the most iconic and beloved RPG of all times you have to be at least respectful with the original source/characters, the fanbase and deliver a solid product. Sadly Beamdog blinded by their political radical view did exactly the contrary and delivered a poorly written, linear, woke to the bone and full of bugs game.
    Currently after many patches some    If you plan to make a sequel of one of the most iconic and beloved RPG of all times you have to be at least respectful with the original source/characters, the fanbase and deliver a solid product. Sadly Beamdog blinded by their political radical view did exactly the contrary and delivered a poorly written, linear, woke to the bone and full of bugs game.
    Currently after many patches some of the most insulting parts (like Minsc's gamergate reference or the trans character dialog) have been either removed or modified, now the trans char gives you that "critical" piece of information as a "reward" for his quest. Also the game is less buggy although it still crashes a lot (completed in Ps4), much more than the BGEE.
    Nevertheless the terrible Amber Scott's writing is way beyond repair, all feminine characters have the same SJW "strong, independent, no-nonsense and superior" attitude making them all alike and 95% of masculine chars are either just dumb, malicious or under a strong independent woman. The personality changes on classical chars like Jaheira or Safana are brutal and now Minsc is just a buffoon. The only interesting new character is the gay gnome but it's not enough to compensate the damage on the other chars and the plain new ones.
    Story wise it's too predictable, it resurrects characters killed on BG and opens storylines that will never be closed on BGII. The ending is also too abrupt.
    The overall game reminded me much more to Iced Wind Dale as to a BG due how railroad it is, map after map that you can not revisit once completed.

    On the positive side the OST is really good and the colourful new levels are full with NPCs and sidequests with different resolutions. Also some encounters are epic but sadly full of thrash mobs that must be killed with AOE spells.

    Summary: if it would be a new RPG franchise IMO it would be mediocre but as a Baldurs Gate it's simply bad.    … Expand
  3. Korokota
    Feb 12, 2022
    0
    Awful game, don’t waste your time with it.

    The big problem is it was made by people didn’t like, nor even respected, the original saga, and such lack of care and love for the work they were doing is notorious in every second of the experience, an uncomfortable experience you’d like to forget as soon as possible. If a studio wants to make something completely different and show their    Awful game, don’t waste your time with it.

    The big problem is it was made by people didn’t like, nor even respected, the original saga, and such lack of care and love for the work they were doing is notorious in every second of the experience, an uncomfortable experience you’d like to forget as soon as possible.

    If a studio wants to make something completely different and show their own ideas, cool, please do it, probably they’ll have their public, but at least be honest and create a new title for your product and let the customers decide freely. Don’t be so ruin of taking advantage of an already existing iconic IP to cheat thousands of gamers and then try to convince them all they are wrong, their likes weren’t right, and you came to teach everybody what they really must like.

    Sad, coward and extremely disappointing.
    Shame on you Beamdog!    … Expand
  4. Amsheagar
    Nov 27, 2021
    8
    Much as good as the original. I liked the story. The graphichs more upgraded but it doesnt hit from the old one. I will just start baldur's gate 2.
  5. chosen0ne
    Oct 7, 2021
    9
    It's a fun game that doesn't reach the highs of its predecessors. Don't go in expecting it to be as good as BG1 or 2 and you'll still have fun! It has some decent mechanics and fun maps to explore. I bought it in a bundle with the 2 enhanced editions and was happy with that purchase. It's been the subject of unfair review-bombing, so I wouldn't pay much mind to the user score. MassesIt's a fun game that doesn't reach the highs of its predecessors. Don't go in expecting it to be as good as BG1 or 2 and you'll still have fun! It has some decent mechanics and fun maps to explore. I bought it in a bundle with the 2 enhanced editions and was happy with that purchase. It's been the subject of unfair review-bombing, so I wouldn't pay much mind to the user score. Masses of people scoring it a "0" have an axe to grind.

    Overall, it's fun, classic gameplay in an already-established world. I loved the final levels and the artwork was great.    … Expand
  6. Method__Man
    Aug 6, 2021
    9
    Ignore the haters. The game is incredible. I have loved the series for over 20 years, this game is VERY true to them
  7. AtlasA
    Jul 3, 2021
    1
    Weak story compared to original BG. Poor writing and characters. Quick buck by using an established franchise name?
  8. velsubek
    May 19, 2020
    10
    Although this game has poor writing, I must say it has the spirit of Baldur's Gate and tries its best at being an interlude between the two classics. When I treat it as a big modification to Baldur's Gate it is just fine, but when I think how much it costed on launch, it just makes me sad.
  9. ViperSnake02
    Apr 28, 2020
    3
    This expansion does great with fleshing out the story and filling in the gap between BG1 and BG2. But the lack of good starting companions makes this expansion almost unplayable for non warriors on anything harder than easy (no tanks until mid game). Not to mention the in your face SJW/woke dialogue and characters. Once I beat it one time, I have yet to play it again. Now I just use theThis expansion does great with fleshing out the story and filling in the gap between BG1 and BG2. But the lack of good starting companions makes this expansion almost unplayable for non warriors on anything harder than easy (no tanks until mid game). Not to mention the in your face SJW/woke dialogue and characters. Once I beat it one time, I have yet to play it again. Now I just use the CLUA console to up my BG2 character instead of slogging through this expansion.… Expand
  10. hazsch
    Apr 8, 2020
    8
    Beamdog's 2016 DLC to a 1999 game is... surprisingly good. Most if not all of the bugs that were present at launch have been patched, too.

    I adore the Baldur's Gate series. I'm a total shill. So when I first heard they were making a 30 hours expansion to the original game, I was so hyped for it. When I finally played it when it released, I was pleasantly surprised. There are all new    Beamdog's 2016 DLC to a 1999 game is... surprisingly good. Most if not all of the bugs that were present at launch have been patched, too.

    I adore the Baldur's Gate series. I'm a total shill. So when I first heard they were making a 30 hours expansion to the original game, I was so hyped for it. When I finally played it when it released, I was pleasantly surprised. There are all new characters, with returning characters from the originals and the Enhanced Editions. Some stand outs for me were...

    - Corwin. A Flaming Fist archer who accompanies you on your journey. The first female bisexual character in the series. Her character is very grounded, and she's featured heavily in the game. I would adore her in BG2.
    - M'Khiin. This goblin showcases the new class Beamdog introduced with this DLC: the Shaman. It's really fun, and it's quite like a druid with the spell memorisation system of a sorcerer. She's a really solid character, and I'd love to see her return in some BG2 DLC.
    - Viconia, Edwin and Khalid. Yeah, you read that right. These returning characters from the originals have their original voice actors and they put on a fantastic show. Khalid actually sells us his character and makes him likeable, which only serves to depress us further when he dies at the beginning of the second game... thank you for making me hurt, Beamdog.
    - The hooded man. Oh yes, quite like "The Armoured Figure" in BG1, we have "The Hooded Man" in SoD. Hearing David Warner speak in character again after all these years gave me chills. I love it.

    The expansion itself is sizeable, but is VERY linear in comparison to the base game. For the 10 or so areas there are, there is a lot of content to enjoy in each one, but not so much that it feels unnatural. Not to mention, Siege pushes the Infinity Plus Engine to its limits with the amount of characters on screen at one time reaching heights we've never seen in an IE game, not to mention the graphics in general are just beautiful.

    I recommend Siege of Dragonspear to new players and returning ones.    … Expand
  11. Steyraus
    Feb 27, 2020
    1
    I was insanely excited back when this game and the re release of Baldurs Gate was coming out. Then after playing them and learning they had completely re written the originals and this new chapter was a woke, activists wet dream all my interest in the future of this franchise was depleted..
    Why couldn't they leave Baldurs GAte alone, the story was finished and the whole experience was    I was insanely excited back when this game and the re release of Baldurs Gate was coming out. Then after playing them and learning they had completely re written the originals and this new chapter was a woke, activists wet dream all my interest in the future of this franchise was depleted..
    Why couldn't they leave Baldurs GAte alone, the story was finished and the whole experience was beautiful..Now there's a gay orc constantly trying to sodomize you and dialogue straight out ot the feminist hand book.    … Expand
  12. SIPPIO
    Dec 3, 2019
    0
    Lazy, minimal effort, mediocre writing & obvious cash Gram..
    Beamdog is on blast because they have ALOT of remasters of our legacy coming soon..
    The quality better be better then this....
  13. Yury_Vashurin
    Nov 7, 2019
    9
    I played this expansion right after having completed BG1 for the first time and completely unaware of any scandals regarding it. And I found Siege of Dragonspear really satisfying. Perhaps some old fans of BG1 will consider my words blasphemous but I really like SoD more than the original game (but of course BG2 is much better, that's for sure). The story is decent, I don't have nothingI played this expansion right after having completed BG1 for the first time and completely unaware of any scandals regarding it. And I found Siege of Dragonspear really satisfying. Perhaps some old fans of BG1 will consider my words blasphemous but I really like SoD more than the original game (but of course BG2 is much better, that's for sure). The story is decent, I don't have nothing against this expansion to be linear (it's nothing bad when a sequel is more linear, just remember Ultima 7 with its Part Two being significantly more linear than Part One and still retaining its high quality), and the SJW thematics don't strike the eye at all comparing to ME: Andromeda, for example. I wouldn't call this expansion a masterpiece but it doesn't deserve at all to be rated so low.
    P.S. I imagine the situation if one of my childhood game would get an expansion nowadays - that would be excellent, marvelous, astonishing and I would be pretty forgiving towards its possible shortfalls. What's wrong with you, dear BG fans? Why are you so excessively critical?    … Expand
  14. Joewashere
    Aug 22, 2019
    1
    Modernity is a tribe of pygmies furiously trying to bury the Giants that came before them so as not to feel inadequate. It is sad to see Baldur's Gate name associated with this trash, but what can you do? It seems in the Current Year, games made in Canada have a 'Duty of Care' and social responsibility to be retarded, losing Beamdog the hope to make Bladur's Gate III in the process.Modernity is a tribe of pygmies furiously trying to bury the Giants that came before them so as not to feel inadequate. It is sad to see Baldur's Gate name associated with this trash, but what can you do? It seems in the Current Year, games made in Canada have a 'Duty of Care' and social responsibility to be retarded, losing Beamdog the hope to make Bladur's Gate III in the process. Congratulations to Larian Studios.… Expand
  15. 7vtw8axu5do4
    Dec 13, 2018
    9
    I really like this game but then again im quite familiar with Baldurs Gate so its great for me. Playing it on my iPhone, really small UI is the issue but otherwise great.
  16. RG9
    Jun 9, 2018
    0
    Game was a alright, pretty much the same hack n slash but with an awful writing and bugs here and there.

    But with Amber Scott trying to push down her agenda and pretty much taking a big dump on 99.9% of BG fans it would be an abomination not to give this a 0/10.
  17. kelvincasing
    Mar 3, 2018
    2
    It's sad that this expansion had so much to recommend it, like original voice actors returning and some nice nods to other beloved Infinity Engine games. Sure, there are technical bugs and issues, but that could have been addressed.

    The problem is that Beamdog seems to have confused talented writing with an ability to spout propaganda like a wonky fire hydrant. To be honest, I could    It's sad that this expansion had so much to recommend it, like original voice actors returning and some nice nods to other beloved Infinity Engine games. Sure, there are technical bugs and issues, but that could have been addressed.

    The problem is that Beamdog seems to have confused talented writing with an ability to spout propaganda like a wonky fire hydrant. To be honest, I could live with the propaganda if the writing was otherwise excellent - but it isn't, so I won't. Five gibberlings with a busted typewriter could do better if given sufficient time and a potion of mind focusing.

    Also, appealing for fake positive reviews, if true, is shameful behaviour from a developer. So is trying to write off players with valid criticisms of the game's technical and creative issues as bigots. Beamdog seems to love a cliche - so I'm surprised they haven't heard that "the customer is always right!".    … Expand
  18. Wizeroy
    Jan 2, 2018
    7
    Beamdog, creators of this expansion have compared it to Throne of Bhaal.
    Also I have to consider fact, that both beginning and ending of the game are pretty well defined by original games.
    Having that in mind I installed the game expecting a solid chunk of linear story with some interesting characters along the way. ...I got exactly that. Story: It's good, sometimes fantastic, but    Beamdog, creators of this expansion have compared it to Throne of Bhaal.
    Also I have to consider fact, that both beginning and ending of the game are pretty well defined by original games.
    Having that in mind I installed the game expecting a solid chunk of linear story with some interesting characters along the way.
    ...I got exactly that.

    Story: It's good, sometimes fantastic, but sadly not very replayable. It's a single ride thing that should give you a good time while it lasts. Dialog choices are much more Mass Effect than Baldur's Gate to be honest (be a saint/jerk or make a joke) and they don't affect the plot in any meaningful way. I found myself always looking for more informative options for often interesting background. Also sidequests... not a lot of them, mostly good, couple ok'ish.

    Characters: I found Shining Lady to be an interesting and charismatic adversary. She brought certain moral dilemma with her that I won't spoil... suffice to say, it works.
    Supporting cast sadly is a mixed bag, especially your old time crew mates. Writing for some of them seems inconsistent compared to what we know and love about them. It's worst for Viconia and Edwin which feel completely misinterpreted. On the bright side, all NPCs have much more voiced dialog, often voice their opinions and have small side quests to pick your interest. Some of the new additions are also a welcomed sight. On technical level gathering strong party isn't hard.
    The controversial background character many people focus on in their critique is absolutely ignorable.

    Gameplay/Combat: Ah yes... this feels much more like Ice Wind Dale than Baldur's Gate. Often huge amounts of trash monsters will force you to use your AoE spells. Some of them have an interesting behavior and AI seems better than in old titles. It keeps you on your toes especially on higher difficulty settings.
    The UI changes are great. Every page seems clear and more informative. Key Bindings for camera movement is something we've been waiting for ages and completely changes the way you do micromanagement (good key binding makes everything faster). The UI color palette could be better, but it didn't detract from my experience.

    Graphics: Remembering new maps from BG:EE 1 and 2 I had big concerns about the look of the game. Fortunately here, the maps are absolutely stunning. Well done for art director. Quite often I stopped to look at things in awe. They really pushed the infinity engine to its limits. Many locations can easily rival and beat Black Isle creations. The resolution could be better, but then again, it keeps things running on my aged potatoe laptop.

    Music: It's great, it fits, it has everything it needs. Sounds like old but new Baldur's Gate, recorded on fresh equipment which gives it this clear feel (yeah, music from BG 1 and 2 is kinda rusty).

    Mods: not many of them, some work, some have no reason to work. I suggest checking out Big World Setup for easier time.

    I wish Siege of Dragonspear had bigger impact on story and characters in BG:EE2 (it has none because you know... reasons) but I guess we have to leave it to modders.

    So, coming from someone who goes through whole Baldur's Gate once a year for nostalgia (every time with different mods) I give it solid 7/10. Good time, flawed but definitely not wasted.    … Expand
  19. QweSteR
    Nov 13, 2017
    7
    [7.9] Siege of Dragonspear связующее сюжетное звено между Baldurs Gate 1 и 2. Дополнение позволяет лучше раскрыть характер главного героя и завязку сюжета Baldurs Gate 2. Из достоинств самое лучшее визуальное оформление и самые масштабные бои в истории серии. Вариативность решений сопоставимо с оригинальной игрой, существенных недостатков нет.[7.9] Siege of Dragonspear связующее сюжетное звено между Baldurs Gate 1 и 2. Дополнение позволяет лучше раскрыть характер главного героя и завязку сюжета Baldurs Gate 2. Из достоинств самое лучшее визуальное оформление и самые масштабные бои в истории серии. Вариативность решений сопоставимо с оригинальной игрой, существенных недостатков нет.
  20. mokaloka
    Oct 2, 2017
    7
    I enjoyed my time with this game, but it certainly has it flaws. The sterotypical stoner type with the magic mirror was a bitt over the top, as well as some voice acting not being of a very high standard.

    You don't relly get that "Baldurs Gate-feeling" the two originals had, but nonetheless, it is not a waste of time if you liked them.
  21. jprepo1
    Oct 1, 2017
    2
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Poorly written, very, very buggy, and pretends to be a socially conscious by writing characters in the most token way possible, inadvertently being disrespectful.

    The game is extremely linear, with almost no choices to actually be made, removing a lot of player agency.

    It also goes back and rewrites some characters, such as Safana, for being not PC enough, which is pretty disrespectful to the source material.

    Oh, and they're begging for good reviews on their forums, which, as you might expect, should be a huge warning sign.

    Has potential, but the developers need to fix their bug and get a whole heck of a lot less preachy.    … Expand
  22. Arkhan
    Sep 9, 2017
    8
    This game is a worth expansion for the original Baldur's Gate, which was not an easy thing to do. I can say its not as good as the original because there are some issues, but overall its very solid.
    The storyline is very good and very well placed and coherent with both BG1 and BG2 and the setting itself.
    The best thing of this game is the care they took to represent the environment, it    This game is a worth expansion for the original Baldur's Gate, which was not an easy thing to do. I can say its not as good as the original because there are some issues, but overall its very solid.
    The storyline is very good and very well placed and coherent with both BG1 and BG2 and the setting itself.
    The best thing of this game is the care they took to represent the environment, it is really coherent and feels alive, its full of great details and descriptions. And a good work has been done to relate places and history of faerun with what is going on in the personal story of the character.
    You can see there are very good ppl who has been involved into this, who really care about both the settings and the overall feeling of the game. There are even references to something you find in R.A. Salvatore novels of drizzt.

    I didnt like the high rate of combat in the central part of the game, especially on one map it was unrealistic to have so many fights one so near to the next.
    Same thing about some encounters: too many "important" encounters within a too short period of time (its not always like this, only in the central part). This is the only narrative flaw i can find here, they should give the right pace to important things to appreciate them, this is very important in an rpg. The rhythm in an rpg is not the rhythm of other types of games, which is the one most ppl are used to.

    Dialogs are ok, and the npc's have a good characterization. Voices are great for the most part, there are even old voice actors of the original series, except for one voice at the end which doesnt fit at all.....

    I didnt encounter any major bugs playing the entire game in these months (from may to september 2017).

    I have to spend some words about the drama of the "social justice" theme in this game, since it seems im one of the few that is reviewing the game having actually played it before writing.
    There are 2 lines of text of a minor npc, one among hundreds of npc, which is spoken only if u actively ask the npc to talk about her, and she will tell you she is transgender. Plus another 2-3 lines of dialogs that could be intepreted as "educational" or "social" if u really want to see it that way.
    For example, someone says that they dont trust orc allies because of their race, and a possibile answer is that you judge people for their action and not their race. That's a perfectly acceptable dialog and fits in the events that were happening in that moment.
    Another famously incriminated line: "Dont worry, mama can take care of herself". This is spoken by someone who was going to war, saying the last words to its child.
    Of course i hate the attitude to throw politically correct or forced educational concept in an rpg,
    but i also hate the attitude and need of some guys to criticize, and jump on the bashwagon just because they feel superior this way. And i think this last one is by far the major problem here, and its the general problem of my generation of the 30ties and even of younger people to find the pleasure in hating and seeing faults in others. I dont want to digress on this, you can make up your mind by playing the game and judge yourself.
    Having that said, developers should always remember not to throw social opinions or problems in games, especially games like this, but still i dont feel there shouldnt be a drama for this particular game and those lines, especially in the context they were used.    … Expand
  23. minusfive
    Aug 6, 2017
    0
    To all who bought the "ehhanced" editions of BG and BG2: you are directly responsible for this abomination seeing the light of day! I hope you're happy now that Beamdog monkeys have smeared their **** all over the timeless classic. Don't say you didn't know. Don't say we didn't warn you.

    This. Is. All. Your. Fault.
  24. Skulb
    Feb 1, 2017
    0
    Remaking an all time PC classic into linear, poorly written and completely unnecessary LGBT indoctrination? Yeah, there's only one score one can give this drivel...
  25. securon
    Jan 23, 2017
    0
    SoD may appeal to fans of the original game, particularly if you stay away from some of the new party NPCs which are annoying and poorly written, but there is little to recommend to someone new to the BG series.

    Many unnecessary additions in terms of graphics, journal updates, UI modifications, and a story mode While there is 20-30 hours worth of game play here, there is almost    SoD may appeal to fans of the original game, particularly if you stay away from some of the new party NPCs which are annoying and poorly written, but there is little to recommend to someone new to the BG series.

    Many unnecessary additions in terms of graphics, journal updates, UI modifications, and a story mode

    While there is 20-30 hours worth of game play here, there is almost nothing new or anything particularly memorable. There were certainly no OMG moments or challenging fights.

    A significant amount of content seems to have been cut & paste from Icewind Dale

    Some NPCs from the original game are back: Dynaheir & Viconia were particularly well done.

    Game is very linear, and overall limited by the below par writing    … Expand
  26. Verthiss
    Jan 16, 2017
    8
    Just finished it and I have to admit, it liked it very much. There are a lot of minor improvements to the game which make the game more enjoyable. NPCs are awesome and well written (especially Voghiln and Mkhiin), there are a lot of interesting quests, new class (shaman) is amazing, all that good stuff. Main story isn't anything mind blowing, but it's good enough. I'm not sure if I wouldJust finished it and I have to admit, it liked it very much. There are a lot of minor improvements to the game which make the game more enjoyable. NPCs are awesome and well written (especially Voghiln and Mkhiin), there are a lot of interesting quests, new class (shaman) is amazing, all that good stuff. Main story isn't anything mind blowing, but it's good enough. I'm not sure if I would recommend the game to somebody who never played original games (some systems in the game aged poorly and the character models are as ugly as they always were in the series), but I will definitely recommend it to anyone who enjoyed the series.… Expand
  27. gammafot
    Dec 15, 2016
    0
    I actually enjoyed this game, I felt it fit rather nicely between BG1 & BG2. Could it have been better, yes but overall it was ok, it does need some more bug fixing though.

    What I do not appreciate are the insults and disrespect from certain individuals working at Beamdog. Banning and disrespecting fans (or disrespecting the original game) is not a good business model.
  28. HDelf1
    Dec 11, 2016
    0
    Game was ok, experienced a few bugs with the game crashing to desktop and certain events not triggering. The ending was a severe let down

    The silencing and insulting of fans by the community manager and some others at Beamdog was lame to say the least. I doubt I will buy another product from the company if they continue with this sort of thing.
  29. movgam1
    Dec 6, 2016
    0
    Played the original game back in 1998. I recall it got excellent reviews and quite a few awards, including game of the year. Unfortunately, Dragonspear bears little resemblance to its predecessor.

    Also, the game developers, Beamdog treated quite a lot of fans in a disrespectful way.

    Thankfully I got a full refund.
  30. del101
    Dec 6, 2016
    0
    Writing was rather poor in terms of the overall story, characters and dialogue options.
    Voice acting was not needed in many places, text would have sufficed.
    Quite a few bugs
    The new NPCs are not great and old NPCs were modified
    The attitude of Beamdog towards fans was most disappointing
  31. Isaacssv558
    Dec 5, 2016
    0
    This is an insult to the BG franchise. It was released with crippling bugs, including almost non-functional multiplayer. It adds no features not offered in higher quality through mods. It has horrible writing. It includes offensive, badly written, stereotypes of the LGBT community motivated solely through a misguided belief that the original Baldur's Gate was somehow sexist. If you want toThis is an insult to the BG franchise. It was released with crippling bugs, including almost non-functional multiplayer. It adds no features not offered in higher quality through mods. It has horrible writing. It includes offensive, badly written, stereotypes of the LGBT community motivated solely through a misguided belief that the original Baldur's Gate was somehow sexist. If you want to hear about the troubles of a transgender cleric who can't be bothered to simply wear a belt of gender changing, which costs a mere 70 gold, then by all mean, but the game. If you want a functional Baldur's Gate with access to amazing mods made by the community, buy the original.

    Rather than buying this crap, but the original unenhanced edition. Then, install BGtutu or another merger mod to connect BG1&2. Then, go through the various WEIDU compatible mods to customize the game to your taste. Features available through mods include everything from widescreen to recruitable characters to bugfixes to improved AI to multikitting.    … Expand
  32. Peregrinx
    Dec 4, 2016
    0
    This game is severely undermined by amateurish writing and unnecessary additions. Many of the decisions Beamdog took with party NPCs were difficult to understand but given what happened in BGEE & BG2EE, my expectations were already very low. The bad simply outweighs the good by a considerable margin. Also there are too many bugs for a game of this size which is completely linear in scope.This game is severely undermined by amateurish writing and unnecessary additions. Many of the decisions Beamdog took with party NPCs were difficult to understand but given what happened in BGEE & BG2EE, my expectations were already very low. The bad simply outweighs the good by a considerable margin. Also there are too many bugs for a game of this size which is completely linear in scope.

    Given how some Beamdog contractors insulted fans of the original, begged for good reviews, and banned individuals giving valid criticism of their games (this also happened with BGEE / BG2EE)
    the lack of quality in Dragonspear was to be expected. This time the lack of quality was magnified because for contractual reasons Beamdog were not allowed to modify the contents of BG1 & 2 too much and with Dragonspear they could do whatever they want, and it shows.

    I am not entirely sure what purpose Dragonspear serves, because it does not bridge the gap between BG1 & 2 in a satisfactory manner. A lot of questions remain unanswered for instance will the new NPCs appear in BG2 now?

    Judging by how some individuals at Beamdog conducted themselves in a supercilious manner, one would think their intention was to deliberately antagonize the demographic of the original games to garner media attention? Beamdogs community manager, and some writers, are clearly out of their depth and have no business tinkering with an established IP, particularly one which was once held in such high regards amongst RPG enthusiasts. Getting their hands on the Baldur's Gate IP, and moderating an online forum evidently led some individuals to develop a false sense of grandiosity, whose professional and intellectual limitations were exposed when dealing with the negative reception to Dragonspear.

    In terms of positives, I suppose one of the few redeeming features of the game was Caelar Argent, as it is good to see a strong female antagonist (for comparison Mellisan or her real name Amelyssan the Blackhearted from Throne of Bhaal, had little impact) but again her involvement was not without flaws due to the lackluster writing.

    Overall it is a shame I have to write a review of this nature for a series I held so much affection for back in the day. Too many fans of the original Baldur's Gate and D&D, essentially received the proverbial middle finger from Beamdog over the past 4 years. It is important fans do not acquiesce to such treatment and actively hold game developers to account for their actions.    … Expand
  33. Triobugbear
    Dec 3, 2016
    0
    There were some good ideas here but it was badly let down by poor writing, game design decisions, lack of QA and worst of all a lack of professionalism.

    For instance, when you start the game you find that Imoen is no longer part of your party because she is training to be a mage. However in my save game from BG1, Imoen was already dual classed so she is a level 7 thief and a level 8    There were some good ideas here but it was badly let down by poor writing, game design decisions, lack of QA and worst of all a lack of professionalism.

    For instance, when you start the game you find that Imoen is no longer part of your party because she is training to be a mage. However in my save game from BG1, Imoen was already dual classed so she is a level 7 thief and a level 8 mage, making her already very competent in magic. Many other players also dual class her. This sort of oversight just breaks immersion.

    The "Story Mode" is insulting.

    Overall a very average game, however additional points must be deducted as the lack of professionalism by the "community manager" is unforgivable. Banning people on their official forum over the years for no good reason, spreading lies as to why people were banned, asking for "positive reviews" or deeply insulting fans of an established IP because they criticize a game which is average at best is not acceptable.    … Expand
  34. Sbiritou
    Nov 22, 2016
    0
    A piece of complete garbage. Unworthy of the name Baldur's Gate. Wizard of the Coast ordered Beamdog to sack the hacks that wrote this game under threat to lose the licence to Baldur's Gate and they complied. Both ""writers" are gone but this garbage is still out there tainting the name of a legendary series. If it wasn't associated somehow to Baldur's Gate, neither me nor thousands ofA piece of complete garbage. Unworthy of the name Baldur's Gate. Wizard of the Coast ordered Beamdog to sack the hacks that wrote this game under threat to lose the licence to Baldur's Gate and they complied. Both ""writers" are gone but this garbage is still out there tainting the name of a legendary series. If it wasn't associated somehow to Baldur's Gate, neither me nor thousands of people would have ever bought this. Lesson learned, last dime Beamdog sees from me. Too bad.… Expand
  35. DAOuser
    Nov 5, 2016
    7
    Como expansión funciona bastante bien, sobre todo teniendo en cuenta que se sitúa entre BG1 y BG2 y que originalmente no se suponía que fuera a haber una trama que tuviera lugar entre ambos juegos y que sirviera de transición.

    No obstante tampoco carece de defectos y errores, tanto a nivel de programación como en el desarrollo de la historia. Hay elementos, situaciones y personajes que    Como expansión funciona bastante bien, sobre todo teniendo en cuenta que se sitúa entre BG1 y BG2 y que originalmente no se suponía que fuera a haber una trama que tuviera lugar entre ambos juegos y que sirviera de transición.

    No obstante tampoco carece de defectos y errores, tanto a nivel de programación como en el desarrollo de la historia. Hay elementos, situaciones y personajes que parecen demasiado forzados y que afectan al ritmo del juego e impiden que se disfrute al máximo.    … Expand
  36. masi
    Nov 5, 2016
    6
    Okay, just finished playing the Siege. My thoughts:

    1) The combat part wasn't bad. The enhanced AI now allows enemy troops to drink potions and target the weakest members of the party first. It was actually my first Infinity Engine experience (played 'em all except IWD2) where Insane difficulty DID feel insane (as for the new "legacy of Bhaal", i gave up on it after being pwned by a    Okay, just finished playing the Siege. My thoughts:

    1) The combat part wasn't bad. The enhanced AI now allows enemy troops to drink potions and target the weakest members of the party first. It was actually my first Infinity Engine experience (played 'em all except IWD2) where Insane difficulty DID feel insane (as for the new "legacy of Bhaal", i gave up on it after being pwned by a pack of rats in BG1 prologue). However, I wouldn't say that combat was awesome either, because all the enemy encounters felt more or less the same and for the most part combat tactics I could use were reduced to entangling the hordes of enemies and fireballing them to death. It got boring by the end.

    2) The riddles were nice. There weren't many of them around but I did enjoy them.

    3) The Baldur's Gate city decorations were very-very good, despite the city being reduced to only 3 or 4 buildings. I was thoroughly impressed with how they managed to create the illusion of life with those outdated isometric sprites. It was very cool. Sadly, after you get out of the city, the illusion vanishes.

    That's about all i did like about the game. now let's move on to the things I didn't.

    4) The bugs. Many complained about the came being cartoonish, however I didn't find it much of an issue. The thick outlines and heath bars they added are extremely ugly but thankfully you have the option to turn them off. However, it doesn't change the fact that the UI is buggy as hell. The map, for instance, is now unusable half the time (at nighttime it goes black, footnotes at the bottom of the map go off the screen). Screen scrolling is somewhat slow. The game crashed a few times. From time to time I experienced some weird bugs like the game screen starting to shiver or two NPCs/enemies getting stuck in exact same point, unable to move. Deciding to kick someone out of the party and stopping halfway results in the "reform party" screen popping up next time you load the game... The bugs are just too many.

    5) The party AI. Like I said, the enemies' AI improved a great deal, but the party AI, however degraded somewhat. During enemy encounters your companions just love to occasionally stand still doing nothing instead of using ranged weapons like they are supposed to according to the AI you set for them. That means more micromanagement and is very irritating. The pathfinding degraded from running all over the map instead of going in straight line to going in straight line and stopping in front of the first horse's ass that happens on the way, without any effort to go around it. Nah, I liked the old pathfinding better, despite its obvious faults.

    6) The writing. I am not a native English speaker, so I believe myself to be somewhat lenient in this respect. But even so, I felt how horrible the writing was. Because (SPOILERS):

    a) The story. The main antagonist is that kind of weird special snowflake that is very powerful and charismatic and is able to assemble a huge crusade force because of being so great and powerful and charismatic and yet she is utterly stupid to and not willing to listen what her opponent has to say - totally not the kind people would generally follow and worship, IMHO

    b) the characters and dialogue. After seeing for myself, I can say all that fuss about a certain Tempus cleric was too overblown. Oh well, she perceives herself as woman, whatever, I don't care. You can ignore her for most part. I do, however, have issues with another "diverse" character that can be taken into your party. That particular npc is actually relatively well-written, compared to the most Siege companions I tried taking into my party. I found his banter rather amusing... up to the point he all of a sudden decided to kiss me without me NOT having an option to say smth like "errr... sorry you are a nice guy and all but you are not exactly my type, me being a straight elf and you a gay gnome, you know". In this particular case I did feel the LGBT being FORCED upon me without an option to refuse and it felt pretty awful. Was it done on purpose? I don't think so. The writer(s?) just made a very sloppy job of transitioning a bromance into a romance, and that being a touchy subject, created a **** Another SoD romance (straight) that I tried didn't feel any better than that: "How is the weather? - "No time for idle talk, we have a mission" - "what do you think about XXX?" - "No time for idle talk, we have a mission" - "what do you think about YYY?" - "No time for idle talk, we have a mission"" - "Oh, Corwin, I'm so attracted to you..." SRSly? what is there to be attracted to?

    One of the saddest things about writing is that they somehow managed to destroy what Bioware had already made. Edwin has been the love of my life ever since I first played BG2. The SoD Edwin has the same voice actor, but his dialogue was so pathetic and non-Edwin-like, that I kicked him out and took Baeloth instead. Minsc wasn't any better. Didn't try out the others though.    … Expand
  37. Stellen
    Sep 26, 2016
    0
    So many crashes and bugs, not to mentioned corrupted save games, it's just not worth it. It's not even a good game, the story is nothing special and inconsistent and characters just don't seem genuine.
  38. glenp5
    Aug 5, 2016
    8
    I finished this portion of the game and I completely enjoyed it. I did not encounter any of the game breaking bugs I had read about, even in the 2.0 phase. While the new UI is different it grows on you and is an improvement overall. Now I am just waiting on the iOS version for my second run thru.
  39. TrueGamer81
    Jun 17, 2016
    1
    I understand a lot of people are taking exception to the "SJW" agenda perceived in the game. The problem is I've heard some gamers use "SJW" and "leftist" almost interchangeably. Well I want to clear something up: I'm a leftist, I am an actual leftist and despise SJWs and their divisive, self-righteous, identity politics laden, petty bourgeois rhetoric. Just thought I'd point this outI understand a lot of people are taking exception to the "SJW" agenda perceived in the game. The problem is I've heard some gamers use "SJW" and "leftist" almost interchangeably. Well I want to clear something up: I'm a leftist, I am an actual leftist and despise SJWs and their divisive, self-righteous, identity politics laden, petty bourgeois rhetoric. Just thought I'd point this out because I don't want people to associate true left-wing politics with little crybaby liberals, and I certainly don't want the political left associated with this awful, awful game.

    That is all.    … Expand
  40. Warnoise
    Jun 14, 2016
    0
    Another game destroyed by the plague that is called Feminism.

    We are at dark age where **** and perverse political agendas infiltrating all kinds of entertainment just to brainwash the mass.

    This is a piece of crap and i hope that they g bankrupt because they insulted us, the fans.
  41. Grenkin
    Jun 14, 2016
    0
    Worst game of 2016!

    Broken quests, cartoony graphics, terrible writing/dialog, crashing, stupid AI, ruined character personalities, and political nonsense where it has no business existing. Thankfully, Steam offers refunds now and that made me happy.
  42. KrekkaBlade
    Jun 9, 2016
    0
    I could look past all the technical issues and questionable design choices, but the writing is simply horrid.

    Safana's "transformation" of character is, simply put, retarded and inconsistent, the game is very linear (unlike true Baldur's Gate games), sometimes the Chaotic Evil characters aren't offered dialogue options that suit their alignment and on top of all these glaring issues,    I could look past all the technical issues and questionable design choices, but the writing is simply horrid.

    Safana's "transformation" of character is, simply put, retarded and inconsistent, the game is very linear (unlike true Baldur's Gate games), sometimes the Chaotic Evil characters aren't offered dialogue options that suit their alignment and on top of all these glaring issues, they have the guts to mock their own playerbase.

    This is not Baldur's Gate, as you might've guessed reading the other reviews. If Beamdog wants to force their agendas in a game, they should do it in a series of their own. I hope WotC takes their rights to the BG franchise back, because Beamdog has neither the skill nor the knowledge of how to do a proper fun, well-written RPG.    … Expand
  43. theirrelephants
    Jun 4, 2016
    0
    The rewriting of character's personalities to fit the studio's political ideologies was disgusting enough (looking at you too, "Shadow Warrior"), but the fact that the rewriting wasn't even competently done makes it unplayable. I've been able to put up with hamfisted ideological self inserts by developers before and still enjoy a game, but I simply can't do it here. The writing is justThe rewriting of character's personalities to fit the studio's political ideologies was disgusting enough (looking at you too, "Shadow Warrior"), but the fact that the rewriting wasn't even competently done makes it unplayable. I've been able to put up with hamfisted ideological self inserts by developers before and still enjoy a game, but I simply can't do it here. The writing is just that awful. Honestly, in some parts of it I found myself wishing that I was playing Dragon Age: Inquisition instead. Jesus Christ.

    I won't say anything about the numerous gamebreaking bugs or awful UI, because everyone else has already mentioned that.

    Basically if you want to enjoy baldur's gate, just download the original and use Tutu. This 'expansion' won't tickle your nostalgia button, it will enrage it. Stay far away.    … Expand
  44. MetaKen7
    Jun 3, 2016
    0
    Don't bother with this garbage.

    Get the original un-enhanced editions along with the BGtutu mod. After that, you can download the fan-made Dark Side of the Sword Coast, which is infinitely better than what Beamdog has created here with Siege of Dragonspear. Also FYI the company behind this game are attempting to remove all negative critics (this is roughly my 14th time posting) and    Don't bother with this garbage.

    Get the original un-enhanced editions along with the BGtutu mod. After that, you can download the fan-made Dark Side of the Sword Coast, which is infinitely better than what Beamdog has created here with Siege of Dragonspear.

    Also FYI the company behind this game are attempting to remove all negative critics (this is roughly my 14th time posting) and soliciting for the 10/10 reviews you see on here. Pretty disgusting behaviour.    … Expand
  45. SpectralTime
    Jun 2, 2016
    10
    I am gonna level with you. I'm still playing through the "Baldur's Gate" portion of the game, with a new character, and I can review that part. It's pretty good. I like the new UI, for the most part, and the new options. Baldur's Gate will always be inferior to its sequel, but it's a good, technically-proficient translation.

    But it's not a ten. That ten's there out of spite, for    I am gonna level with you. I'm still playing through the "Baldur's Gate" portion of the game, with a new character, and I can review that part. It's pretty good. I like the new UI, for the most part, and the new options. Baldur's Gate will always be inferior to its sequel, but it's a good, technically-proficient translation.

    But it's not a ten. That ten's there out of spite, for all the people making this game the next battlefield in their pointless little war.

    Screw all of you.    … Expand
  46. TurnipKnight
    Jun 2, 2016
    8
    Here's an attempt at a balanced review, intended for those familiar with Baldur's Gate I and II:

    PROS --the Siege of Dragonspear expansion begins immediately after BG I and ultimately sets up BG II in a way that is, I think, logical and pretty cool. --the settings, particularly once the group is on the road, are classic AD&D. I liked the opponents--trolls and bugbears, displacer    Here's an attempt at a balanced review, intended for those familiar with Baldur's Gate I and II:

    PROS
    --the Siege of Dragonspear expansion begins immediately after BG I and ultimately sets up BG II in a way that is, I think, logical and pretty cool.
    --the settings, particularly once the group is on the road, are classic AD&D. I liked the opponents--trolls and bugbears, displacer beasts, etc.--that brought me back to my table gaming days.
    --the new items are imaginative and tend to reward unconventional class and race choices (bards, monks, stalkers, dwarves, gnomes, etc.).
    --the new shaman class works well, and my favorite new NPC is definitely the goblin shaman.
    --the game is an enjoyable return to Faerun (the Forgotten Realms setting) and the Sword Coast.

    CONS
    --as many have pointed out, the game is too linear. Let me join the Crusade if I want! Why not?
    --after an interesting opening dungeon, the encounters in the city of Baldur's Gate a pretty lame: NPCs that act strangely and won't join my party, simplistic side quests, etc. The game gets going, though, once the team is finally on the road.
    --there's some definite personality retrofitting of classic BG NPCs that is kind of distracting (what's up with Coran? and Skie?).
    --the new sprite outlines are indeed ugly (but can be disabled) and so is the shift to grayscale on pause (which also can be disabled).
    --the game can be glitchy, though I assume the programmers are working on that.

    All in all, the game is a solid addition to the Baldur's Gate saga. I highly recommend starting with BG I and moving into Siege immediately after. You can then continue with the mind-blowingly expansive BG II. It's classic RPG action--with the rudimentary graphics associated with a nearly twenty-year-old game engine. Immersion is everything in these games. If you let them, they'll fire your imagination and consume many, many hours of your life.

    One last word, on the "SJW" controversy and nasty review-bombing: yes, there is one explicitly transgender character, a very minor NPC. There is also a prominent bisexual NPC. Such people exist in our own world and have always been a part of Dungeons & Dragons and Baldur's Gate. This is truly no big deal.

    I'm inclined to give the game a 7 owing to current glitches, but I'll bump it to an 8 with the hope and expectation that these will be addressed and fixed in forthcoming versions. I'm certainly grateful to the creators for their incredibly hard work on this and am very frustrated by the unkind and unfair responses.    … Expand
  47. elManicho
    May 19, 2016
    0
    Problems:
    1) graphics seem degraded. Game looks like a cartoon now.
    2) AI is still stupid as ever. 3)some encounters are silly. Bunch of undead around a tomb (dinner table)? 4) screen scroll doesn't work nicely. 5) everything seems blurry. Like someone spilled smoke over the game. Original game was far more crispy and clear. 6) new class is supposed to dance. No animation....why? So    Problems:
    1) graphics seem degraded. Game looks like a cartoon now.
    2) AI is still stupid as ever.
    3)some encounters are silly. Bunch of undead around a tomb (dinner table)?
    4) screen scroll doesn't work nicely.
    5) everything seems blurry. Like someone spilled smoke over the game. Original game was far more crispy and clear.
    6) new class is supposed to dance. No animation....why? So hard to add some non 1pp stuff in the game? Hire that Sentrizeal guy, do yourselves a favour.
    7) while rather nice, new areas don't really look as BG. So people pls stop writing nonsense line in the course of "it feels like old BG" because it doesn't. Some may like it, some may not; but new areas have nothing to do with original, for bad or for worse.
    8) crashes. gotta love ctds.
    9) Options menu. Click a red box, I can barely tell if an option is now on or off - it's still red, just mildly less. If this is a game for handicapped people, I don't want to know what it would look like if it weren't.
    10) LUA options. Is this so impossible to implement in game, rather than keeping a seperate file that looks like this:
    SetPrivateProfileString('Game Options','Journal Popups','0')
    SetPrivateProfileString('Game Options','Classic Selection Circles','0').........................

    This is awful. Clumsy, lame, seems more like WiP than something a proper game would endorse.

    11) Portraits. Where to begin? What happened to Imoen? Did Sarevok beat her up ? there were supposed to be some new ones. I found 2 male and 2 female, both of fairly low quality looking as they just arrived from Arcanum of Steamworks; a quick google search will net you several dozen better ones.
    12) LoB mode is nothing more than a very simple mod can do - unlike the game implementation, mod actually works properly.
    13) Most importantly, it's linear. No BG game is so linear as SoD.
    14) The devs begging for positives reviews in their forums was hilarious and just sad.
    15) Deleting negative reviews, really? I'll keep posting, it just shows how corrupt these guys are.    … Expand
  48. masterfox3000
    May 18, 2016
    10
    Loved the inclusion of a transgender character, especially considering Black Isle always did have progressive writing especially being known to have the fallout series with a lot of gay characters.
  49. Calisthenicz
    May 11, 2016
    10
    I've played the original Baldur's Gate 1 & 2 since release almost 20 years ago, and Siege of Dragonspear is an excellent addition.

    Great atmosphere, story and gameplay. Definitely something I recommend if you enjoy crpg/rpg or adventure type games. User interface is greatly improved and I have still not experienced any bugs. All the negative aspects discussed regarding "Social    I've played the original Baldur's Gate 1 & 2 since release almost 20 years ago, and Siege of Dragonspear is an excellent addition.

    Great atmosphere, story and gameplay. Definitely something I recommend if you enjoy crpg/rpg or adventure type games. User interface is greatly improved and I have still not experienced any bugs.

    All the negative aspects discussed regarding "Social Justice Warrior" theme and other "controversial" characters are just bullcrap. The only way to notice these things is because you want them to be there, not necessarily because they are there.    … Expand
  50. Snorc
    May 8, 2016
    10
    This is really good and fit perfectly between BG1 and 2. I absolutely recommend it. Please do not listen for haters that gave a 0 to this game. Because it justs reflect of 3 lines of dialogue that offended their extremely straight point of view. This game is a gem. The more I know Beamdog, the more I love them. They just manage to keep real rpg alive.
  51. Sabatasso
    May 2, 2016
    0
    This game is the absolute pinnacle of garbage RPG's as of late. The writing is lazy, boring and, due to this, quite comical at times. This game will be famous for being the absolutely lamest attempt at forcing social justice crap down everyone's throat. If you look away from a completely lame attempt at writing a transgender character (in a world that has real sex change a potion away),This game is the absolute pinnacle of garbage RPG's as of late. The writing is lazy, boring and, due to this, quite comical at times. This game will be famous for being the absolutely lamest attempt at forcing social justice crap down everyone's throat. If you look away from a completely lame attempt at writing a transgender character (in a world that has real sex change a potion away), the rest of the writing is almost as bad. It's just sad. R.I.P. Baldur's Gate, you didn't deserve stain on your legacy.… Expand
  52. Zhorge
    Apr 30, 2016
    3
    I'm a long-time fan of the BG series. I've played every original release and original XPAC of the game through multiple times. I think it's one of the greatest CRPGs ever done.

    This not a worthy addition to the BG Universe. Rather, this is a fourth-rate, bug-filled disaster that's being over-accoladed because of the controversy surrounding a character. Frankly, pretty much nobody    I'm a long-time fan of the BG series. I've played every original release and original XPAC of the game through multiple times. I think it's one of the greatest CRPGs ever done.

    This not a worthy addition to the BG Universe. Rather, this is a fourth-rate, bug-filled disaster that's being over-accoladed because of the controversy surrounding a character. Frankly, pretty much nobody cares but for the fact the character was a ham-fisted, poorly-written token to modern political BS.

    That ham-fisted approach was just one symptom of the overwhelmingly ham-fisted, juvenile writing. The new characters are shallow, superficial and uninteresting. The dialogs are poor. Even beloved characters were wrecked. Add in the game play is even more linear than the original and choices are mostly inconsequential coupled with crashed, the UI being utter garbage, I can't see anyone wanting to waste their $20 on this disaster.

    Also, FWIW, I did not finish the expansion. It was that bad. My only regret is that instead of bailing early enough to get my Steam Refund, I held out hoping it'd improve. It did not.    … Expand
  53. EvanWeaksauce
    Apr 30, 2016
    0
    Just the fact that my last review was taken down when it was written tactfully and tastefully really tells you all you need to know. Massive amounts of damage control are being exerted toward this SJW pet project. I will keep re-writing my review but I no longer have the energy to right several thousand words for it to be deleted because I disagree with the premise of this game, not toJust the fact that my last review was taken down when it was written tactfully and tastefully really tells you all you need to know. Massive amounts of damage control are being exerted toward this SJW pet project. I will keep re-writing my review but I no longer have the energy to right several thousand words for it to be deleted because I disagree with the premise of this game, not to mention it's filled with bugs, crashes, and no new or original content was really added. Recycled sprites etc. Stay away from this game.… Expand
  54. CommonBe
    Apr 27, 2016
    0
    Dozens of gamebreaking bugs
    Exceptional poor narrative and woeful writing
    Very poor in comparison to the original games

    Not worth buying in 2016 with so many better RPGs now available
  55. eldergnome
    Apr 25, 2016
    10
    A really solid game and a very enjoyable experience if you enjoyed previous Baldur's Gate games. I found this to be a great effort from Beamdog and I hope they continue adding to the BG series, one of my favorite game series ever. I've been playing the games since they came out originally from Bioware and all I can say is that Beamdog holds fairly well to the spirit of what was trying toA really solid game and a very enjoyable experience if you enjoyed previous Baldur's Gate games. I found this to be a great effort from Beamdog and I hope they continue adding to the BG series, one of my favorite game series ever. I've been playing the games since they came out originally from Bioware and all I can say is that Beamdog holds fairly well to the spirit of what was trying to be accomplished - an isometric AD&D ruleset based CRPG adventure game. If you like "old school" games and have faith that Beamdog will be fixing the few (non-game breaking bugs) then I guess you'll have a lot of fun with this title.

    I assume most of the negative reviews come from people concerned about supposed "controversy" in the game, which is laughable and a nonissue to most gamers, and/or younger gamers that really didn't know what they were getting into with the Baldur's Gate series in the first place. I mean, if you dislike the UI here then you probably never liked the Baldur's Gate UI to begin with - there aren't that many significant changes, etc.

    Overall - solid effort from Beamdog and a game I'm happy to add to my Baldur's Gate library. Here's to them being allowed to do BG3 and continue the story!    … Expand
  56. Originald
    Apr 23, 2016
    0
    While no game is perfect, when Baldur’s Gate (BG) was originally released in 1998 and subsequently followed by a sequel in 2000, I was blown away. The narrative was compelling, the dialogue witty and intelligent, fantastic villains, excellent voice acting, spending time worshiping the ground my Drow Goddess Viconia DeVir walks upon.... oh wait I digress.... but the list of positives couldWhile no game is perfect, when Baldur’s Gate (BG) was originally released in 1998 and subsequently followed by a sequel in 2000, I was blown away. The narrative was compelling, the dialogue witty and intelligent, fantastic villains, excellent voice acting, spending time worshiping the ground my Drow Goddess Viconia DeVir walks upon.... oh wait I digress.... but the list of positives could go on and on. Sure games have moved on since then, with the likes of Dragon Age, Mass Effect, The Witcher, Dark Souls etc. but the original BG series will always be among the RPG greats.

    Hence when four years ago it was announced the games were being revamped with the possibility of new expansions or sequels I was very excited.

    Alas these enhanced editions have been nothing more than severe disappointments and the new expansion Siege of Dragonspear continues the trend of mediocrity one has come to associate with Beamdog products.

    The game was found wanting in almost all areas, including but certainly not limited to:
    Numerous game breaking bugs with clear evidence of lack of QA
    Exceptionally poor writing, dialogue, lackluster character development, lack of insight into how interactions should work
    Spelling and grammatical mistakes
    New party NPCs which are uninteresting, lack charisma and in some instances have no genuine reason for actually being in the game.
    New classes and race specialisms that are completely unrelated to the plot or setting
    New areas that are completely out of place and do not serve any purpose other than to say, hey look its new content!
    A stark contrast in the sense of humour used in the original, the new material lacks any sort of emotional impact
    Unwanted changes to the personality of old party NPCs
    Lack of understanding of D&D lore
    Lack of respect for the original game material
    No new challenges and a watering down of difficulty
    Failed to address balance issues by importing BG2 mechanics into BG1
    Performance issues even on high spec machines
    NPCs are forced upon you in a failed attempt to bring some sort of cohesion to the plot
    Things which are supposed to be Easter Eggs or Jokes (I assume) but achieve nothing but break the game immersion
    Attempts at doing multiplayer did not work
    Importing saved games resulted in crashes almost like malware
    No innovation or creative flair

    The list could go on and on but as there is a word limit here I have kept it succinct.

    While it was good to see some old voice actors return e.g. David Warner reprising his role as the villain Irenicus, Jim Cummings as Minsc, it was sad to see such talented people wasted on this expansion through its poor writing and execution. Even such talented individuals can only perform as well as the script they are given unfortunately.

    As for Beamdog, well for reasons unknown over the past four years there are individuals at Beamdog who decided to alienate a large section of the fan base of the original games by adding unwanted features to the enhanced versions, not listening to constructive feedback, changing things which did not need changing and so on, making promises on game content and translations to encourage pre-orders that were subsequently broken.

    Many genuine fans of the original BG games and D&D have been silenced, banned, discriminated against, trolled upon and subsequently discredited on their official forum over the years, so it comes as no surprise that when Beamdog finally released a new expansion it has failed so miserably to impress the target audience of such a game, the majority of whom do not actually use the official Beamdog forums.

    The lack of professionalism permeates Beamdog's ranks is not only confined to its own forum though, as evidenced when Beamdog actively encouraged individuals to give artificially high review scores in attempts to circumvent the barrage of negative criticism received for the poor quality of their
    products. Unfortunately for Beamdog they cannot silence people on metacritic, steam, YouTube, twitter and other social media as they have done within the confines of their own forum.

    Beamdogs main achievement with this expansion is to merely undermine the original games legacy once again with another below par release.

    In comparison to more modern game titles available in 2016 or even if one prefers retro style games, one cannot recommend investing any time or money in this expansion.

    Final Verdict: All those responsible for this substandard game expansion, and for that matter the "enhanced" versions of the BG games, should be banished indefinitely to the Nine Hells of Baator!!    … Expand
  57. BSim500
    Apr 21, 2016
    0
    It seems blanket "hater" false accusations along with mass scale deletion of non-abusive negative posts have become the new straw-man for deflecting against entirely valid criticism of amateurish writing and multiple game breaking bugs. This "expansion" isn't just bad by itself, the update that accompanies it has actually broken the base game for many too. So many glitches (eg, text boxIt seems blanket "hater" false accusations along with mass scale deletion of non-abusive negative posts have become the new straw-man for deflecting against entirely valid criticism of amateurish writing and multiple game breaking bugs. This "expansion" isn't just bad by itself, the update that accompanies it has actually broken the base game for many too. So many glitches (eg, text box not appearing, UI flickering, save-game corruption, constant crashing, characters disappearing, gear from imported characters disappearing, getting stuck in doors, broken mods, broken multiplayer, dialogue errors, UI degradation that makes the game look WORSE than the original 1998 release, etc). Many of the 10/10 "infallibly perfect" scores contain the usual egocentric "Don't read any reviews that scored less than me", and many others come from recently created accounts with no other game reviews.

    The current 3.7 out of 10 is actually quite accurate given the broken state of the game. And that's in the face of a massive, deliberate and sustained attempt to try and censor as many negative reviews as possible (regardless of non-abuse) plus Beamdog's call to inflate positive reviews as a panicked response to a self-inflicted review bomb caused by non existent QA and "amateur hour" PR. After seeing Beamdog's attitude towards its customers, this is the last game I'll ever be buying from them...    … Expand
  58. Badgerbeer
    Apr 20, 2016
    0
    Very poor game experience underpinned by many short comings in the story, dialogue options and a myriad of game breaking bugs. This is particularly damming as it was the story line and NPC personalities that made the original so great back in the day. The voice acting was also poor in comparison to the memorable lines delivered in the original back in 1998. Many of the new additions do notVery poor game experience underpinned by many short comings in the story, dialogue options and a myriad of game breaking bugs. This is particularly damming as it was the story line and NPC personalities that made the original so great back in the day. The voice acting was also poor in comparison to the memorable lines delivered in the original back in 1998. Many of the new additions do not fit into the story line at all such as new character classes and races and the new NPCs are exceptionally poor and forced upon you at times. One could be forgiven for thinking that the new development team / writers had not actually played the originals? Unnecessary changes were also made to fondly remembered original NPCs that did not match their character at all.

    Multiplayer did not work, but that may be a positive as there is little content or replay value to actually warrant me and colleagues to play this together.

    Overall I would recommend any fan of the original game from 1998 and its sequel to NOT play this expansion or the enhanced editions for that matter, as this is a very poor product hiding behind the Baldur's Gate name and there is certainly nothing here to warrant the title of "enhanced"

    I should also bring to your attention that Beamdog actively encouraged their "fans" to artificially boost review scores were possible, in response to the negative reception the expansion received.    … Expand
  59. brotherTherm
    Apr 20, 2016
    9
    Despite a few stumbles I've found this expansion to be thoroughly enjoyable. I'm not going to touch on any of the Gamergate debacle (because every time I do my review gets deleted), but to say things have been blown out of all proportion is the understatement of the century.

    First off I'll address the negatives. Beamdog's intention is for SoD to act as a bridge between the first and    Despite a few stumbles I've found this expansion to be thoroughly enjoyable. I'm not going to touch on any of the Gamergate debacle (because every time I do my review gets deleted), but to say things have been blown out of all proportion is the understatement of the century.

    First off I'll address the negatives. Beamdog's intention is for SoD to act as a bridge between the first and second games. In the main they've done a pretty good job at this and it certainly addresses the abrupt jump between the two but I think they could have spent a little more time on the transition from BG1 to SoD. Imoen in particular is handled poorly in my opinion. Regardless of whether you dual classed her during the first game and had her casting level 5 spells by the end, she'll start SoD as an apprentice mage to one of the Dukes. It's nice that they offer an explanation as to why she was dual classed at the start of the second game if you kept her as a pure theif in the first, but it really breaks the immersion if you already dualled her. Considering that she isn't a party joinable NPC in SoD this may not be a big deal for people, but for me I think some extra work could have been done to consider player choice and consequence.

    Another gripe was with some of the writing. While the plot was enjoyable for the most part (if a little predicable), I often felt CHARNAME was constrained in their available dialogue choices. For instance, despite uncovering various plot twists during the course of the adventure, for some reason I couldn't alert any of the main NPCs to them. In one encounter I was practically shouting at my monitor "THAT GUY IS A TRAITOR DUDE, SOMEONE DO SOMETHING" but it seemed I and everyone in my party had selective amnesia.

    One last minor complaint was the overplaying of the Irenicus foreshadowing. One of the things I liked most about the opening to BG2 was the not knowing what was going on. Who is this guy, what does he want, and where am I. This is diluted quite heavily by the events in SoD with a robed Irenicus popping up all over the place, and while he never explicitly tells you who he is or what is motives are, if I was playing the series for the first time I'd have a pretty good idea who my captor is at the start of BG2. It was good hearing David Warner's distinctive delivery however so w/e.

    Finally, on a technical level there were also some annoying bugs although nothing game breaking on my run through. They're all being looked at by the devs but intermittently being unable remove more than one arrow at a time from a container was frustrating. Multiplayer was also a bit of a mess I hear although a patch has since been released that apparently fixes the issues.

    Now, the positives. They really have pushed the Infinity Engine to its limits. Not to spoiler it too much but you travel north at the head of a Flaming Fist company, and it really feels like you have a company of soldiers at your back. There are several big set piece battles; lifting a siege at a river crossing, a camp defence, and the assault on Dragonspear itself and they all feel appropriately weighty, especially that final battle. It was definitely a memorable experience leading the charge through the shattered gate into a sea of bads and you're going to have a lot of fun re-playing it a couple of times.

    Also of note were the level designs and artwork. The dungeon maps weren't as broad or deep as SoA, more akin to the ToB designs, but this was fine for what they needed to be, momentary diversions from the main path, not huge multi level affairs like Durlag's or Watchers. All the areas were beautifully rendered though and BD introduced some very nice new effects for some areas that really added to the ambience. All in all some top notch work and I'm looking forward to hopefully some more ambitious designs in the future.

    To finish with I also wanted to touch on some of the minor improvements that make a difference. First off is being able to switch between sword and shield and two handed load-outs without having to mess about in your inventory. My dual wielding F/M can now whip his crossbow out with a single button press and this really is the best thing ever. Then there are things like being able to talk to people without them then turning to face you all the time for 5/10 seconds after, the introduction of loot spots that only appear when certain conditions are met (rather than being able to find all the things because you're constantly mashing tab), and the new map and the silky smooth transition to and from it. These are just a few examples that come to mind now, but throughout I was constantly finding these little improvements and smiling. This is definitely a team that have actively played the series and understand all its quirks and know what needs looking at.

    So in conclusion I can honesty say I've enjoyed the experience and anyone not picking up a copy because of "politics" is missing out on a great addition to the series.    … Expand
  60. Fawks
    Apr 20, 2016
    0
    The writing is not even fanfiction worthy. I still can't believe what they did to Safana. How Beamdog's genius writers can explain her sudden personality shifts between first and second games.
  61. lman03
    Apr 19, 2016
    0
    This game is bad. I read all these reviews that said it was the most amazing thing ever, but they lied to me. The graphics are bad, the story is bad, the gameplay is bad, the UI is bad. I don't know how it got a good rating and good reviews from the game news sites.
  62. Marchel
    Apr 18, 2016
    9
    Having read the 'reviews' here by other users - I'm kinda in hysterics. The original Baldurs Gate was by no means Shakespeare, so lets not kid ourselves here and the story for Siege Of Dragonspear is certainly better than Throne of Bhaal and retains a lot of the humor from the original games. The voice-acting is again - no worse or better than the original series either.

    I played    Having read the 'reviews' here by other users - I'm kinda in hysterics. The original Baldurs Gate was by no means Shakespeare, so lets not kid ourselves here and the story for Siege Of Dragonspear is certainly better than Throne of Bhaal and retains a lot of the humor from the original games. The voice-acting is again - no worse or better than the original series either.

    I played Baldurs Gate when it originally came out - complete with massive bugs that were never going to be fixed in the "good old days" of CD-gaming and I played both games through often, up until the Expanded Edition release, which was a very welcome change, including the new UI, which wasn't very user friendly if you weren't a D&D 2nd Ed player.

    Scoring 9 because thats what I'd have rated the original, too.    … Expand
  63. greywolf00
    Apr 18, 2016
    8
    TL;DR - Will buy another Beamdog developed RPG.

    Obviously this is a bridge between BG1 and BG2. Beamdog made some changes including increased size of enemy parties which definitely necessitates a more tank heavy approach. My PC was a fighter/thief, and I had to pair him up with Dorn and Viconia in melee in a fair amount of battles to keep the back line safe. There are some things    TL;DR - Will buy another Beamdog developed RPG.

    Obviously this is a bridge between BG1 and BG2. Beamdog made some changes including increased size of enemy parties which definitely necessitates a more tank heavy approach. My PC was a fighter/thief, and I had to pair him up with Dorn and Viconia in melee in a fair amount of battles to keep the back line safe.

    There are some things that SoD does better than the base game. I really liked the way they changed random ambushes with unique maps. The areas are larger, you can actually position your party, and most of the time there was a small bonus cave/reward. The number of enemies is much larger than the base game in several areas, and I really liked some of the new enemy additions. The maps are much more saturated with content than the original series. They added a lot of magic items to better round out offerings.

    I only played with two of their created characters through BG:EE and SoD, but they were both pretty good. Baeloth is a really useful mage addition, though I found his personality and dialogue in SoD fairly annoying. That was not an issue in BG:EE. Dorn is both a useful character and a really well written companion. Great addition to any evil party.

    A found a lot of the banter for SoD to be really well written. Edwin hitting on Viconia was great.

    As for the story, I thought it was really solid, until the very end. Had they finished the writing right after the close of the crusade, I think there’d be far less complaints. Even then, my complaint stems from it just not fitting the lore well rather than poor writing.

    The only UI change I really hated was the journal. Mixing completed quests and in progress quests together randomly just creates way too much clutter. If there's one thing they need to patch, this is it.

    I was not sold on Beamdog as a developer from their EE games. After playing SoD, I'll gladly buy another RPG they develop.    … Expand
  64. EarX
    Apr 17, 2016
    10
    It's an expansion I never thought would have happened until I stumbled upon it a couple of weeks ago, and before trying it I wasn't even sure it would be a good thing. Sometimes old classics are best left in the past. Lucky thing that's not the case here. Clunky UI and dated sprite renders aside, Beamdog has done a great job with this, not least in subtly modernizing the experience for aIt's an expansion I never thought would have happened until I stumbled upon it a couple of weeks ago, and before trying it I wasn't even sure it would be a good thing. Sometimes old classics are best left in the past. Lucky thing that's not the case here. Clunky UI and dated sprite renders aside, Beamdog has done a great job with this, not least in subtly modernizing the experience for a modern audience.

    The game flows well and has good pacing, at the price of being somewhat linear. Though not as linear as you might fear, there is still an assortment of optional sub-quests and areas to explore within each chapter. More streamlined than the originals in other words, for good or ill. The writing, perhaps more important than anything else in any Baldur's Gate game, is very good and fits seamlessly with the originals. I was particularly impressed by how well they managed to flesh out the bare-bones NPC's from vanilla BG1, being both consistent and toning down some annoying aspects. I no longer feel the urge to send Dynaheir and Khalid to horrible deaths first chance I get, but they don't feel at odds with their original portrayals either. Very nice.

    So that's it for the game itself, well worth the money if you like Baldur's Gate or just enjoy quality D&D RPG's in general. There's this controversy going on about SJW and GG and such. I'll just point out that there's very little of any kind of social agenda in the game itself, at least that I could see. About 30 seconds of dialogue that I would have missed entirely if I hadn't been aware of it beforehand. If that's enough to ruin the *more than 30 hours of fun* that is the rest of the game for you then... steer clear I guess? You'll be missing out big-time though, just saying...    … Expand
  65. Zarthos
    Apr 16, 2016
    0
    This is my first ever game review, and the writing and story to this game are outrageous. The story deviates from the norms of Baldur's Gate, with added, unnesaccery political ideology.
  66. paulrevere
    Apr 16, 2016
    0
    Would you like a new Harry Potter novel in which Ron would be rich and Hermione would have an average intelligence level to not discriminate anyone? Would you like a new Tolkien novel where hobbits were taller to not discriminate anyone?

    Most likely NO. If you add to an existing series - in this case Baldur's Gate - stick to the lore. If you don't want to stick to the lore, create    Would you like a new Harry Potter novel in which Ron would be rich and Hermione would have an average intelligence level to not discriminate anyone? Would you like a new Tolkien novel where hobbits were taller to not discriminate anyone?

    Most likely NO.

    If you add to an existing series - in this case Baldur's Gate - stick to the lore. If you don't want to stick to the lore, create your own IP and leave the original untouched.

    Siege of Dragonspear is a total failure. I wish it would have never been released. It befouled my beloved Baldur's Gate.    … Expand
  67. Oskorei
    Apr 15, 2016
    0
    There's two main things wrong with this add-on:
    1. Shallow story filled with blunt propaganda. That's what happens when you hire teen fairy girl/trans to write story for serious game.
    2. Lack of Baldur's Gatish feeling. It's not Baldur's Gate anymore, everything just screams about it. In the result there's no atmosphere, no reason to play. I'll better go and play original series for the    There's two main things wrong with this add-on:
    1. Shallow story filled with blunt propaganda. That's what happens when you hire teen fairy girl/trans to write story for serious game.
    2. Lack of Baldur's Gatish feeling. It's not Baldur's Gate anymore, everything just screams about it. In the result there's no atmosphere, no reason to play.
    I'll better go and play original series for the tenth time.    … Expand
  68. MRGamer
    Apr 14, 2016
    0
    Beamdog, all you had to do was treat the original game with respect, and any reasonable attempt at an expansion would have sold hand over fist day one. Instead, you had the nerve to "fix" what was not broken, and add unnecessary elements that detract from the game and change beloved core characters from the original. When you reflect on this as a business decision, realize that you lostBeamdog, all you had to do was treat the original game with respect, and any reasonable attempt at an expansion would have sold hand over fist day one. Instead, you had the nerve to "fix" what was not broken, and add unnecessary elements that detract from the game and change beloved core characters from the original. When you reflect on this as a business decision, realize that you lost sales, not because of the supposed political drama and shortcomings of customers' worldviews, but simply because you deviated from an original IP that was a sure thing. In my case, I am a long time fan of the original games, and hold them in such esteem that I will not suffer an expansion that is not true to the original. I chose to get a refund on Steam for this reason. I had modest expectations for this expansion, and would gladly have purchased it, but Beamdog could not leave well enough alone and just take my money.… Expand
  69. Gulskjegg
    Apr 13, 2016
    0
    I played Baldur's Gate when it was released back in 1998, and remember it fondly. I still have images of the original installation CD's plus the Sword Coast expansion. Ultimately, Baldur's Gate set the standard by which all RPG games would be measured. Unfortunately, this latest release is not only bug ridden, but also badly written, and reflects poorly on the quality the developers. To beI played Baldur's Gate when it was released back in 1998, and remember it fondly. I still have images of the original installation CD's plus the Sword Coast expansion. Ultimately, Baldur's Gate set the standard by which all RPG games would be measured. Unfortunately, this latest release is not only bug ridden, but also badly written, and reflects poorly on the quality the developers. To be blunt, this game is an insult to the BG legacy, not an enhancement. Do not reward inferior programmers that are far more interested in pushing their kooky social agenda than they are with creating smooth, bug-free games.… Expand
  70. wallfrog
    Apr 11, 2016
    1
    Pros: Its Baldur's Gate, kinda... I guess? Combat hasn't changed too much, so that helps a bit.

    Cons: Oh Gawd, the writing... much of it isn't just fan fiction quality, its BAD fan fiction quality. I was writing stuff at this level in middle school ffs. Its like they're being bad on purpose. What else..., oh bugs galore. Crashes, slow downs (didn't they swap to a new engine?),    Pros: Its Baldur's Gate, kinda... I guess? Combat hasn't changed too much, so that helps a bit.

    Cons: Oh Gawd, the writing... much of it isn't just fan fiction quality, its BAD fan fiction quality. I was writing stuff at this level in middle school ffs. Its like they're being bad on purpose.

    What else..., oh bugs galore. Crashes, slow downs (didn't they swap to a new engine?), disappearing NPCs (or teleporting, they come and go at times), borked quests, and my personal favorite, missing save files. Thanks so much for wasting 7 hours of progress, Beamdog. Much    … Expand
  71. MarcusSofurious
    Apr 11, 2016
    0
    I cant believe a game was released with such game breaking bugs. First of all my save file has been corrupted four times. So consider my impression of the game 4x as tiresome as it needed to be.
    I tried to slog through the resets and crashes, but the dialogue is horrendous. Characters seem to be lables and ideas rather than living and breathing. They dont fit with the setting.
    Its very    I cant believe a game was released with such game breaking bugs. First of all my save file has been corrupted four times. So consider my impression of the game 4x as tiresome as it needed to be.
    I tried to slog through the resets and crashes, but the dialogue is horrendous. Characters seem to be lables and ideas rather than living and breathing. They dont fit with the setting.
    Its very reminiscent of a cosmonaut at a dog show, aure maybe theirs a convoluted reason for him being there, but he keeps shouting russian propoganda at people and spilling vodka everywhere.

    It's trash. Not because of the constant crashes and wipes, not because of the horrible, childish dialogue, but both. I cant mindlessly ignore the dialogue due to the crashing, and I cant forgive the crashing because theirs nothing good to come back to.

    Save your money, this is not a completed game, and it shames any goodwill I had with the franchise    … Expand
  72. karmasleeper
    Apr 11, 2016
    3
    Linear gameplay, few consequential choices, restricted travel, bugs everywhere, terrible UI with awful arrangement, lame story, bad writing with shoehorned "vibrant" characters, and my save games got corrupted.

    Black Isle Studios is no more. The golden age of RPGs has passed us by. This game may look the part, but it's a modern piece of trash through and through.
  73. oh_brother
    Apr 10, 2016
    9
    A great game that bridges a gap between BG1 and 2. You get another adventure with your Bhaalspawn...what's not to like? The characters are well written and it's great to interact with them (for me, including the ones that I had not spent much time with in the original) hear some of the old voices again, while the story is nicely focused.

    Unless you have an unusual passion for the    A great game that bridges a gap between BG1 and 2. You get another adventure with your Bhaalspawn...what's not to like? The characters are well written and it's great to interact with them (for me, including the ones that I had not spent much time with in the original) hear some of the old voices again, while the story is nicely focused.

    Unless you have an unusual passion for the immutability of gender you can safely ignore a lot of the anger on here. It was one line, in a minor PC that was optional and that in any case would not offend 99.9% of people. I don't say this to discredit valid criticisms people may have (some bugs, etc.), but I will say that most of the tone and intensity of criticism is focused through that prism. Very odd.

    All in all, you will know what to expect and you won't be disappointed. As some else mentioned here, if you want to get a feel for what the game does or doesn't do, go watch a video of someone plating it. That will probably tell you more than the reviews on here.    … Expand
  74. Dodkong
    Apr 10, 2016
    10
    I finished the game yesterday and i was very happy about the job beamdog did porting the old infinity engine to 2016. The game looks really good, the old game- and battle mechanics are challenging as always, and it's certainly a "true" ad&d-game in terms of storytelling and balancing. I'm very saddened about all those negative views that have nothing to do with the game, so go and checkI finished the game yesterday and i was very happy about the job beamdog did porting the old infinity engine to 2016. The game looks really good, the old game- and battle mechanics are challenging as always, and it's certainly a "true" ad&d-game in terms of storytelling and balancing. I'm very saddened about all those negative views that have nothing to do with the game, so go and check SoD yourself and give it a fair chance… Expand
  75. AwesomeButton01
    Apr 9, 2016
    1
    Summary: The only valid reason to spend money on Siege of Dragonspear is if you are looking for an Infinity Engine dungeon crawl, and are completely immune to irritation on account of its linearity, limited freedom of travel between areas which runs counter to the Baldur's Gate tradition, embarrassingly bad writing, and to top it off - an uglified 'enhanced' user interface.

    I spent some    Summary: The only valid reason to spend money on Siege of Dragonspear is if you are looking for an Infinity Engine dungeon crawl, and are completely immune to irritation on account of its linearity, limited freedom of travel between areas which runs counter to the Baldur's Gate tradition, embarrassingly bad writing, and to top it off - an uglified 'enhanced' user interface.

    I spent some time wondering if this game was even worth writing about at all. In the end I thought people should at least be forewarned of what expects them in this paid mod/DLC.

    Siege of Dragonspear's only redeeming value is the Infinity Engine and its combat. That's about the only thing that has not been tainted by Beamdog's incompetence in every aspect, and has even been somewhat improved by tailoring combat encounters, and AI scripting.

    That's about the only good news though. The Baldur's Gate games have always been the most open-ended of the Infinity Engine games, up until the rushed Throne of Bhaal, allowing you a lot of freedom in which area you'd visit and which quest you'd approach next. The designers at Beamdog however decided to make their own lives easier at the expense of gameplay, and have made Siege of Dragonspear a railroaded, linear slog through each large area and multiple smaller areas connected to it. This reminded me of a game that I and a team of students I had never met in person had to put together in a week's time for a software academy course - sure, our game had to run from the windows command prompt, but the gameplay was pretty much the same - you move from room to room, kill the enemies and can't go back. I didn't expect to get the same kind of gameplay from a purported "Baldur's Gate expansion".

    Regarding writing - my opinion is if you're looking for good writing in computer games, you're better off reading a book, or playing one of select few adventure games (Grim Fandango and The Longest Journey are the first that come to mind). Sometimes however there are writers so ignorant of their own lack of talent and so full of themselves that the results of their labor deserve a mention in a review.

    Most people talking about the writing of SoD concentrate on specific instances which caused outrage for various reasons. However I do not think he problem with the game's writing is the themes, sadly it's far more basic - it's the inability of the writer to create distinctive characters, even after such characters have been served to her on a silver platter with the BG license. Playing the game just a couple of hours beyond the starter dungeon nets tens of examples of:
    - Every last female character of any importance speaks with the same vocabulary, uses the same sort of "witty responses" and sarcasm, and its language is stylistically indistinguishable from the next.
    - Every female character is obligated to express her superiority to men at every opportunity, in general or in particular - whether that be her father, her boyfriend, her traveling companion (Dynaheir/Minsc), or a male PC. Examples range from Corwyn's daughter, to Skie and her father, to Viconia and some generic duergar friend of hers who serves no other purpose except for her to spite him, to the Safana and Coran exchange. You don't even have to look closely for those examples.
    - Minsc has to act as if he's signed a contract with a hamster pets shop chain, by which he is bound to mention Boo in literally, and I mean literally, every other sentence that comes out of his mouth. The Boo jokes are so overdone, that as much of a fan as you could be, you could seriously grow to hate Minsc by the end.

    This inability to draw distinctive characters generally speaks of lack of good literary examples and culture around which a distinctive writer's style could develop, and lack of personal experience with and understanding of real-life people. I'm sorry, but the writing team in this game is worthless as a writer and should never have been let near SoD's script.

    So, what exactly is left of a Baldur's Gate game when you remove the cheerful high fantasy atmosphere and characters, and the open world? Character progression and combat, supposedly. As for character advancement - if you start at the XP cap for BGI (160,000) you may only advance by two levels in SoD (up to 500,000 XP). Most of character customization comes from items you find in shops and in dungeons. Unfortunately combat in itself isn't enough motivation for me to play through this game, especially since this is not all that a Baldur's Gate game is supposed to be.

    As a D&D and Infinity Engine games longtime fan, SoD was a huge disappointment for me. The more you care about the series, the less I could advise you to buy this so-called expansion. Really a paid mod with a fanfic-level of writing, and some above average dungeon crawling, lasting between 15-20 hours on Core Rules/Normal difficulty.    … Expand
  76. FreedomFromCrap
    Apr 9, 2016
    0
    I rarely rate a game 0, but this one deserved it. Not only was the writing and dialogue among the worst that I have ever seen, but my save corrupted several hours into the game. I was forced with either quitting or restarting from the beginning. I had no motivation to replay the content that I had already played, because to be honest, the game is just not good... I rated this 0 becauseI rarely rate a game 0, but this one deserved it. Not only was the writing and dialogue among the worst that I have ever seen, but my save corrupted several hours into the game. I was forced with either quitting or restarting from the beginning. I had no motivation to replay the content that I had already played, because to be honest, the game is just not good... I rated this 0 because with frequent save corruption it's nearly unplayable. If the save corruption was fixed, then I would rate this at about 3.… Expand
  77. coconner
    Apr 8, 2016
    0
    Its just bad. I had to restart three times because of game breaking bugs. The writing is on the level of poor fanfiction. Established characters have had their personality changed, multiplayer support is non-existent.
  78. DickTracy
    Apr 8, 2016
    0
    I already knew the writing from Beamdog is weak and sub-par from the previous EE games, so I have low expectations before playing this expansion. My concerns are about gameplay.
    Aside from a barely functional UI, I encountered an incredible amount of bugs in singleplayer of which I'll mention:
    - Localized BG:EE content should not be missing from the SoD build as this expansion is    I already knew the writing from Beamdog is weak and sub-par from the previous EE games, so I have low expectations before playing this expansion. My concerns are about gameplay.
    Aside from a barely functional UI, I encountered an incredible amount of bugs in singleplayer of which I'll mention:

    - Localized BG:EE content should not be missing from the SoD build as this expansion is supposed to bridge between BG1 and BG2
    - Pathfinding issues
    - It should not be possible to cast arcane spells from quick slots while wearing armor
    - Inventory item icons should not have a distorted shadow effect
    - Character AI choices should be remembered after a load
    - Elves should not have access to all mage specializations
    - It should be possible to load an old save game
    - Legacy of Bhaal stats should not be reset to normal for creatures in the area a game is loaded in
    - Proficiencies should not be ignored for the off-hand weapon if you have a weapon with both a ranged and melee function in the main hand
    - Story Mode and Nightmare mode should not randomly activate and deactivate
    - Character record should display the active weapon style bonuses
    - Archer opponents should not attempt to run away while entangled
    - You should be able to trigger the coalition camp attack
    - Neera's quest items should not disappear
    - Romance should end after dialogue with Glint
    - Legacy of Bhall difficult reset randomly
    - Petrified Dynaheir
    - Khalid and Neera should not be killed at the Bridgefort...

    and 50+ more bugs that I logged in the forums, Spoilers and lack of space to mention here.
    As of right now the multiplayer is simply unplayable.
    Until these is fixed updates and patches that allow for a smoother gaming experience, I consider this game inherently broken. This is simply not acceptable.    … Expand
  79. titmo71
    Apr 8, 2016
    0
    This game is trash. Do not waste your money, time, or effort on this debacle unless your into junior high level fan fiction and have an affinity for game breaking bugs.
  80. rarest_pepe
    Apr 8, 2016
    0
    Pros:
    Technically, it's slick, the graphics are nice and the game engine makes the fights and character development enjoyable.
    Cons: Very glitched to the point it's unplayable. The characters are poorly written, I really felt like playing an amateur self-insert fan-fiction mod. Super cringy. The plot is EXTREMLY railroaded. Basically, it's not a Baldur's Gate game, and it's not a    Pros:
    Technically, it's slick, the graphics are nice and the game engine makes the fights and character development enjoyable.

    Cons:
    Very glitched to the point it's unplayable.
    The characters are poorly written, I really felt like playing an amateur self-insert fan-fiction mod. Super cringy.
    The plot is EXTREMLY railroaded.

    Basically, it's not a Baldur's Gate game, and it's not a very good game altogether.    … Expand
  81. Valarian25
    Apr 8, 2016
    3
    Its just not Black Island Quality anymore

    Even if you look away from the heavy "REALLY " heavy handed Social Justice theme, whats left is actually just a poor shade of former glory. I dont really thing the writers here liked the original game and decided to "improve" it, by adding allot of content that is more SJW friendly. Combine this with bugs and you got a clear score of 3 in    Its just not Black Island Quality anymore

    Even if you look away from the heavy "REALLY " heavy handed Social Justice theme, whats left is actually just a poor shade of former glory.

    I dont really thing the writers here liked the original game and decided to "improve" it, by adding allot of content that is more SJW friendly.

    Combine this with bugs and you got a clear score of 3 in my book and its only 3 becouse i cant stop my nostalgia from popping up.    … Expand
  82. myd00003
    Apr 8, 2016
    0
    I've heard BG hasn't aged well, but I play a lot of retro games, so graphics aren't the most important thing to me. But this expansion is horrendous. Everything looks terrible, including the UI. Everything is worse than how the original was. Multiplayer doesn't work. Writing is bad.
  83. NoBadGames
    Apr 7, 2016
    0
    This game is completely broken in it's current state. My save got corrupted and I had to restart all over again. To add insult to injury multiplayer flat out doesn't work and the writing is bad fan fiction tier (that is being generous). Do yourself a favor and skip this one. I wish I had.
  84. WombatSock
    Apr 7, 2016
    0
    The UI is a mess (black boarders and poor arrangement of buttons). The voice acting is terrible. The character development is as interesting as a potato. The cell shading looks silly. Multiplayer doesn't work... and why do my saved games keep getting corrupted?!!

    Baldur's Gate is suppose to be epic and awesome... why does it have to suck now?
  85. DeathPhoenix
    Apr 7, 2016
    10
    Great work done on a 2 decade old engine. It takes a lot of courage. I want Beamdog to keep up on providing content for my favorite game ever... Of course I'd like them to fire the women that definitely have a feminist agenda and tries to teach you about racism. The problem is mostly that, ok, one character can talk about it, but not 100% of the text! It's breaking immersion. Also, theGreat work done on a 2 decade old engine. It takes a lot of courage. I want Beamdog to keep up on providing content for my favorite game ever... Of course I'd like them to fire the women that definitely have a feminist agenda and tries to teach you about racism. The problem is mostly that, ok, one character can talk about it, but not 100% of the text! It's breaking immersion. Also, the writting is not fantastic. But the game doesn't really completely on it, besides, they agreed to change some of it. Let's hope they rewrite some of it to enhance the enhancements...

    Setting 0 to this game because of the text is completely unfair. Is multiplayer really the main feature? I hope it will be fixed for all of us really soon, but let's be realistic, I don't think Beamdog want to leave you with a Multiplayer that is completely broken...

    Note: Socially conscious isn't supposed to mean that you have to do social teaching. They should have avoided social uncouscious content instead of trying to discuss it in the game (extremely intemporal and not the goal of Baldur's Gate... There is forums for that) ;) hahaha It's a bad, imo noob call from the main writer...    … Expand
  86. TheSnarkyShaman
    Apr 7, 2016
    10
    So I'm about ten hours in and I'm pleasantly surprised. A LARGE portion of the original voice cast are back in enriched roles that, for the most part, are true to character or expand on a one dimensional concept from Baldurs Gate 1. The world has gotten an ambience upgrade. The main antagonist is nuanced and convincing. Generally, I feel like it flows naturally as part of the Baldurs GateSo I'm about ten hours in and I'm pleasantly surprised. A LARGE portion of the original voice cast are back in enriched roles that, for the most part, are true to character or expand on a one dimensional concept from Baldurs Gate 1. The world has gotten an ambience upgrade. The main antagonist is nuanced and convincing. Generally, I feel like it flows naturally as part of the Baldurs Gate games and is a nice bridge. Combat is the same as the old games but with some extra bits thrown in (see again the bigger fights, more enemies on screen) and some new abilities to play with. Anyone who enjoyed the originals should enjoy this.

    It would be remiss of me not to mention the current drama, so let me be clear. There is a minor side character who, after TWO OPTIONAL dialogue prompts by the player, will tell you she is trans. The backlash is, as usual, about 'gamergate' types taking umbrage at that and (at this point) realising that the general populace don't support that and so shifting their criticisms to 'bad writing' (again, it's one optional line of dialogue).

    But don't take my word for it. Don't take their word for it. If you consider yourself a reasonable and autonomously thinking individual, gauge whether you can handle such an assault of 'SJW' values and just try the game yourself. If you're a fan of old school isometric RPG's and Baldurs Gate in particular, chances are you'll get some enjoyment out of this, or an integral new part of an old series at best. As it stands, I'm having a great time with it.    … Expand
  87. Leprykon
    Apr 7, 2016
    0
    Beware, this is not Baldur's Gate game. It's a technical mess with broken interface, very unstable (I literally can't name a recently released game crashing as often as this one) and with some fine, cult-level brainwash attempt for a good measure. Clearly made by people, who know everything is problematic and they have to point it all out, so they couldn't be asked to fix the bugs. I wouldBeware, this is not Baldur's Gate game. It's a technical mess with broken interface, very unstable (I literally can't name a recently released game crashing as often as this one) and with some fine, cult-level brainwash attempt for a good measure. Clearly made by people, who know everything is problematic and they have to point it all out, so they couldn't be asked to fix the bugs. I would give it a 1, bc technically it does run, albeit for unpredictable and rather short periods, but terrible, anti-consumer behavior of devs post-release, makes me retract one point.… Expand
  88. avelayne
    Apr 7, 2016
    10
    I really liked the game. Have the same feelings as about 15 years ago, when i was playing in both original ones. It's like a returning home after a long long absence.
    Hope that's not the last expansion. Would be nice to have actual BG3, with modern graphics
  89. PacoRossi
    Apr 7, 2016
    8
    This is a solid addition to the series. The only significant downside I experienced were some bugs. If that's going to bother you a lot, wait a few months, and then the game will merit a 9-10 rating, on par with the original installments in the franchise.

    Many have argued that the writing is bad, which I disagree with strongly. The broader story arc is quite interesting with some    This is a solid addition to the series. The only significant downside I experienced were some bugs. If that's going to bother you a lot, wait a few months, and then the game will merit a 9-10 rating, on par with the original installments in the franchise.

    Many have argued that the writing is bad, which I disagree with strongly. The broader story arc is quite interesting with some surprises, and it is peppered with fun references to the original series and the lore of the Forgotten Realms.

    Most complaints seems to revolve around the character Mizhena, a very minor non-companion NPC who reveals that she is transgender if you ask her about her unusual name. It is true that she is not very well written, but I didn't find it remarkably bad, and she is not representative of quality of writing in the game more broadly. In general, the dialog is great. Many conversations involve a variety of legitimately different ways that the conversation can be resolved, and there are many more delightfully sarcastic dialog options than in the original series.

    Furthermore, the existence of one or some small number of poorly written small characters or dialogs hardly ruins the game. You might remember many poorly written characters and events in the original series, for instance:
    - Remember how evil companions got mad at you each time your reputation increased, even when you completed quests that promised powerful rewards and your behavior could be rationalized through self-interest and/or the pursuit of greater power? Remeber how "evil" in the original Baldur's Gate series was almost synonymous with "idiotic and masochistic."
    - Remember how Keldorn kind of wants to give up adventuring forever to be with his family but is willing to compromise and follow you indefinitely as long as you give him one full day off?
    - Remember when the Harpers chose to deal with Xzar the Zhentarim spy with an incredibly convoluted scheme that was intricately planned but somehow ready to set into motion when you randomly stumbled across an injured Harper in an alleyway?

    Just as these instances of poor writing did not ruin the original series, Mizhena does not ruin Siege of Dragonspear. In fact, Mizhena's dialog is much less blatant and easier to avoid than the above examples. If you loved the original series, you will probably enjoy Siege of Dragonspear very much, regardless of your political views.    … Expand
  90. Saber-Scorpion
    Apr 6, 2016
    2
    Pros:
    - Some of the old voice actors are back.
    - The gameplay is still pretty much Baldur's Gate, which is of course fine. Cons: - Most of the other new voice actors are pretty bad, and every line is voiced now for no reason, unlike in any other Baldur's Gate game. - There are quite a few bugs, and many previously-working mods are currently broken. - Many changes to the user    Pros:
    - Some of the old voice actors are back.
    - The gameplay is still pretty much Baldur's Gate, which is of course fine.

    Cons:
    - Most of the other new voice actors are pretty bad, and every line is voiced now for no reason, unlike in any other Baldur's Gate game.
    - There are quite a few bugs, and many previously-working mods are currently broken.
    - Many changes to the user interface and graphical style are unwelcome. Some can be disabled in the options, but most cannot. Many of them are there to hold the player's hand, and feel distinctly out of place.
    - The storyline plays fast and loose with established lore and characters, at best. At worst, the writers use it as a soapbox for political commentary on modern themes like gender politics and the refugee crisis. And the iconic character Minsc now gets to spout Internet memes. How wonderful.

    This feels more like fan fiction than a genuine entry in the classic Baldur's Gate series. It wasn't needed. I recommend just playing the original games as they were meant to be played.    … Expand
  91. jrgl
    Apr 6, 2016
    5
    I don't much care for the politics of either 'side' of the whole SJW argument (though I'll try to present a neutral explanation of that in the third paragraph) but the writing in this expansion is very poor particularly in comparison to the original game. There's also bugs out the ass and I'm not willing to forgive that just because it's new. Do note also that the accompanying update toI don't much care for the politics of either 'side' of the whole SJW argument (though I'll try to present a neutral explanation of that in the third paragraph) but the writing in this expansion is very poor particularly in comparison to the original game. There's also bugs out the ass and I'm not willing to forgive that just because it's new. Do note also that the accompanying update to the base game breaks a lot of mods and **** with the UI turning it into something reminiscent of a tablet game. Finally the ending was rail-roaded to all **** I understand it has to try and match up with the existing canon but it could have been done in a better way.

    On the positive side they got many of the original VAs to reprise their roles and that was a nice surprise to me after not following the development too closely. The attempt to link the two games, however poorly executed it might have been, is also praiseworthy.

    Now onto the topic of the political war that seems to have appeared over this expansion. Feel free to skip this part if you only care about the broad picture of the expansion's quality I've given above as it really just comes down to 'poor writing'.

    The character at the centre of the controversy really doesn't fit into the setting. Their views are that of our modern day in a setting where the same issues would just not appear to create those problems that generate such views. You might think of it as someone spouting Marxist terminology in a setting which has not been through the industrial revolution. It's hardly the main problem but it does rather damage suspension of disbelief when it shows up. The changes to existing characters based on one writer's political beliefs are unwelcome also. Regardless of the motive for changing them it just snaps me right out of the game when their personality has completely changed with no explanation. Similarly the overt reference to GG (again something I couldn't care about either way) goes beyond humour and will, I suspect, be more of an annoyance a few years down the line when this has all faded into the background. Direct references to current events never age particularly well. I was rather annoyed by the developer stepping in and demanding positive reviews which, frankly, is the reason I've felt the need to give my view when I'd normally stay silent. Additionally rumours of metacritic itself deleting negative reviews are rather worrying. Surely if anyone deserves that it's the reviews the developer has tried to influence? I am as suspicious of the 9s and 10s as I am of the 1s and 2s for an expansion that is frankly average at best.    … Expand
  92. BanBrado
    Apr 6, 2016
    0
    Terrible, terrible writing and a host of gameplay bugs come together to make a game that spits on the original Baldur's Gate.

    When the developers themselves start begging for good reviews on their forum you know something went horribly wrong making this game.

    Do not buy this disaster, just play the original Baldur's Gate 1/2 and pretend this mess never happened.
  93. aguyuno
    Apr 6, 2016
    10
    There are some glitches I will admit, and hopefully patches will fix them. But otherwise it's so fun and totally worth your money! I hope this group works on more projects in the future; they're clearly a great team.
  94. Bansai
    Apr 6, 2016
    0
    The game just doesn't work properly, it's buggy, multiplayer practically doesn't work, and there are some worriesome changes to some characters personalities that are not canon with the series, which is weird considering it's a bridge, not a sequel/prequel.
  95. Mercator360
    Apr 6, 2016
    10
    Let me begin by saying that this a good game, in fact it is a very good game. Beamdog deserves a lot of praise for bringing a welcome addition to the Baldurs Gate Lore. The game does have some bugs but the company's track records indicate that they will be fixed in due time.

    Unfortunately a lot of reviewers are giving this game low scores because they disagree with the inclusion of a    Let me begin by saying that this a good game, in fact it is a very good game. Beamdog deserves a lot of praise for bringing a welcome addition to the Baldurs Gate Lore. The game does have some bugs but the company's track records indicate that they will be fixed in due time.

    Unfortunately a lot of reviewers are giving this game low scores because they disagree with the inclusion of a trans-gendered character and an emphasis on social justice in the story and dialog. Why is this bad or perceived as such? I believe you have a lot of people that consider the exercise of free expression by others an imposition on their way of life. But this is a game and an art-form designed to tackle modern problems and current issues as part of the overall story and lore of the game. Bioware itself was a leader in creating characters that were outside the mainstream at the time the game was made. This is in part what made them legendary developers. Unfortunately we have an active group of people who decry what they see as political correctness in the game media, what they in fact decry and can not stand is a society that embraces all. As I read their reviews I think to myself who can be against social justice? These reviewers scream about their freedom being infringed by having to deal with subjects and characters that challenge their world view. They in fact want to pigeonhole storytellers and developers, that is in itself a form of the same political correctness this gamer's decry . That is not what game developing as an art form should strive to be or be intimidated into becoming. The whole point of this art form is to open the world to all points or view, to create characters and worlds that challenge us and our imaginations. It should not bow down to those who want to restrict storytelling to the four corners of their small worlds. If you can not handle a character in an RPG do not talk to them or include them in your party, move on, enjoy the rest of the story. If your sensibilities are so assaulted try another game. I hope that the developers do not bow down to these internet bullies and produce the story and the game they want to create. I hope that the market will reward their courage and creativity.

    To most gamer's reading this review this is a game that deserves your support. It is a welcome addition to the Baldurs Gate saga. It has some bugs but the developer has a track record of fixing those. This game is worth your time and money.    … Expand
  96. Pilgrimzero
    Apr 6, 2016
    10
    A great addition to Baldurs Gate. The writing is fantastic and the game is just plain fun. If your a fan of the series and the type of gameplay you owe it to yourself to play this. It's rare to get a good game set in the Forgotten Realms now-a-days. don't miss out on this one.
  97. coffeethrall
    Apr 6, 2016
    0
    When I learned there was going to be new content for Baldur’s Gate, I was excited and hopeful, as one might be seconds before tearing into a beautifully-wrapped Christmas present. Then the wrapping paper came off and I saw the steaming pile of cow excrement inside, and felt utterly betrayed.

    Beamdog released a buggy mess of an expansion. It has broken quests. Dialogue trees with NPCs    When I learned there was going to be new content for Baldur’s Gate, I was excited and hopeful, as one might be seconds before tearing into a beautifully-wrapped Christmas present. Then the wrapping paper came off and I saw the steaming pile of cow excrement inside, and felt utterly betrayed.

    Beamdog released a buggy mess of an expansion. It has broken quests. Dialogue trees with NPCs glitch and force reloads. It has a broken Multiplayer feature. It has writing which reads like middle school fanfiction. The graphics are somehow *worse* than the 1998 originals. The occasional crashes which occur almost feel like the computer itself fleeing from this accursed program.

    Given the hideous way Beamdog has treated its customers in the days since the release, I have no hope that these issues will be addressed. Give this one a pass.    … Expand
  98. Maleficento
    Apr 6, 2016
    0
    18 year old game and probably an even older engine; still can't get it to work without constant crashes. Serious beamdog?
    Massively dissapointed in this mess, and that's a shame because I've loved Baldurs Gate for a very long time.
  99. Stikbomma
    Apr 6, 2016
    0
    Game has tons of very annoying BUGS. The open-world adventurous feel of the original is gone.. The writing (outside of the SJW stuff) is just plain corny and amateur, and not in the same vein as BG1 at all. And yet, the developers are attacking the fan-base of the original game for being disappointed about all the game's problems. Seriously, who does that??? If they had just come out andGame has tons of very annoying BUGS. The open-world adventurous feel of the original is gone.. The writing (outside of the SJW stuff) is just plain corny and amateur, and not in the same vein as BG1 at all. And yet, the developers are attacking the fan-base of the original game for being disappointed about all the game's problems. Seriously, who does that??? If they had just come out and said "look, we apologize, the game has a bunch of issues, but we're working asap to fix them" then that is how you respond to this situation, but instead, they imply we are all liars and bigots and racists, when in fact most of us are just complaining about all the bugs in the game and not a trans character. Marketing 101 Beamdog, if you alienate your brand champions, you are DONE. And even on that note (the SJW stuff), yes the original games flirted with some LGBT ideas you could say, but never forced them down your throat. It's just wrong on so many levels.… Expand
  100. Drackemoor
    Apr 6, 2016
    0
    Buggy. Reckless use of the lore. Too much liberal propaganda is being shoveled down my throat. At one point you forget that it is a game and start looking at it as a bad propaganda piece. I do not recommend it
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Awards & Rankings

24
#24 Most Discussed PC Game of 2016
79
#79 Most Shared PC Game of 2016

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
77

Generally favorable reviews - based on 13 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 8 out of 13
  2. Mixed: 5 out of 13
  3. Negative: 0 out of 13
  1. CD-Action
    Jun 29, 2016
    75
    Living up to such legacy seemed impossible but Beamdog understands Baldur’s Gate and created a game true to the original. Unfortunately along with the party you need to gather a band of patches, because bugs are crawling all over the place. [06/2016, p.40]
  2. Games.cz
    May 18, 2016
    70
    Decent expansion to the classic RPG, which -in addition to the inevitable technical limitations- suffers mainly due to the uneven quality of the script. All in all, it is a very good excuse to once again venture into the world of Faerûn.
    Read full review
  3. Pelit (Finland)
    May 9, 2016
    80
    Beamdog’s expansion embraces both the past and the present. The adventure is inconsistent, ragged and the script could be a lot better, but at its best Siege of Dragonspear captures the essence of Baldur’s Gate - even if fleetingly. [May 2016]
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