Many games on PlayStation 2 were developed with mediocrity
being the norm, which is quite worrisome for those who, like me, wants to see
the console survive. Baldur’s Gate: Dark Alliance is no exception in this
rather sad state of gaming affairs, but judging by the sales and reviews, it’d
merit at least a “slightly above average” rating. I’ll admit it was fun and
mildly addictive for the first few hours, but you can only mash a single button
for so long. (You may even need a thumb cast after this one.) After that, it was
simply a bore and the only hint of entertainment was changing the characters’
armor and seeing them in their skimpy underwear. (No… even that wasn’t
very appealing.)
Originally a RPG series for the PC, Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance made the
transition to the PlayStation 2 with much critical acclaim. Developed by
Snowblind Studios, the game utilizes the 3rd Edition Dungeons & Dragons rules
and is set in the fantasy world of the Forgotten Realms. It provides 30+ levels
of combat and puzzle solving and single or two player cooperative mode. The game
supplies a few sub-quests that are linked with the main quest, but otherwise it
is extremely linear and provides no opportunity to roam freely. You’re given the
choice of 3 characters to play as:
Dwarven Fighter – specializing in short-range and melee attacks Human Archer – trained in long-range attacks Elven Sorceress – skilled in magical mayhem
Choose any one of them, but you might as well have chosen an egg. Like much of
the game, there’s no hint of a personality developing here. Even simple banter
between your character and NPCs is severely limited, crippling the idea of an
interactive environment.
Once upon a time…
The story begins in the infamous town of Baldur’s Gate. Ever the adventurer,
you’ve come with dreams of fortune – what you didn’t expect was to be robbed
blind, get beaten silly, and left to die the moment you enter its gates. From
there, you’re advised to seek haven in Elfsong Tavern, where a captivating voice
sings its sad song, although no one knows where it’s coming from. Alyth, the
beautiful bartender, tells you of the thieves that run this town and warns you
to be careful – but they stole your shit, dammit! Determined to exact terrible,
terrible revenge, you pry for more information and learned that they have
headquarters underground. Alyth offers you the keys to the sewers, but only
after you clear out the population of rats in her cellar. How can you resist
such a tempting offer? So you’re then given a cheap rusty dagger to set out on
the long, winding road of monotonously bashing enemies to death.
Somewhere along the way, you do confront the thieves’ leader and
somewhere in there, a story does exist. For an RPG, it’d be blasphemy to
say it doesn’t. As it turns out, the thieves weren’t the only problem. The story
unravels to include some other villains who were dampening the spirits of the
realms’ denizens in some evil way, thus involving you to find out who’s behind
all this and hopefully, save the day. While the storyline is neither weak nor
strong, it’s definitely lacking crucial development, with most of the attention
shifted to the action. It would otherwise be nonexistent were it not for a few
lines of dialogue and cut scenes interjected in the relentless action. Even
those droppings of a story only guided to a very vague ending – “shadowy”
indeed.
…an anonymous hero comes to save the day…
A self-labeled hack n’ slash fest, there’s really not much beyond that except a
few opportunities to acquire some new weapons or armor as you tread through
dungeons and fight the standard bosses. The armor only improves in strength with
no elemental strengths or weaknesses, or protection against status ailments.
Weapons are mostly generic with bland names like Adamantine Axe, but they get
the job done and quickly. No strategy or thinking is required for the puzzles
here; they are mostly laid out for you, which, if you’re lazy like me, is an
advantage. When you advance a level, you’re awarded with points, which can be
assigned to raise your strength, defense, intelligence and so on. Learning new
spells employ a similar method. The controls are easy and convenient – pressing
R1 or R2 will rejuvenate you or refill your Mana gauge if you’ve got the
necessary potions.
When facing the enemies, you can either choose to attack, block, or cast a
spell. Now, consider doing those things for 10 or more hours and you’ll get a
sense of what “mind-numbing” is. I almost abandoned the game when I got tired of
the non-stop attacks to and from enemies. Sometimes, I just want to take a
breather and explore a little, but the game is simply unconcerned with my needs.
You must also sink your blade into everything you see (barrels, crates, etc.) in
hopes of finding gold, weapons, or potions. There’s hardly a change of pace,
unless you’re confronting an army of kobolds or the enemy happens to be strong
enough to knock you out, which is unlikely unless you play in Difficult
Mode. Easy and Normal Mode are a given and
defeating the game on any mode will unlock the Gauntlet, where you do more
ruthless hacking to a series of familiar enemies with limited potions and no
chance to save. Beat that and you’ve unlocked the Extreme Mode.
Baldur’s Gate: Dark Alliance serves up a few secrets, such as a shot at
playing a hidden character, the popular Drizzt Do’Urden. Pressing [R2 L1 Left
Triangle Start] at the same time (difficult finger maneuvering!) will open a
cheat menu, which will allow you to warp to any level of the game and/or be
invincible. This is particularly helpful when you don’t want to replay the game
on Difficult Mode just to get Drizzt – simply warp to the last
level and beat the boss. What a grand idea – it’s painless!
…at times, succeeding…
Without high quality visuals, Baldur’s Gate: Dark Alliance would be a
romp through uninteresting territories and ugly creatures. Onscreen movements
flow smoothly and characters are given the highest standard, with distinct
facial features, motions and brilliant color. The caves and dungeons, while not
too expansive, have a decent-sized area of exploration and the endless number of
enemies is creatively designed, some better than others. The Onyx Tower is a
lengthy tread, filled with connecting rooms and floors, and has some of the
best-looking foes you’ll encounter. The medieval setting of the game is rightly
benefited with earth tones and dimmed lighting. Overall, the game graphics are
not totally groundbreaking or a trademark of originality, but I’m not digging
for something to complain about.
Music through out the game mostly consists of somewhat muted, orchestrated
pieces. None of it is genius or awe-inspiring, but it suits the game very well
because pop fluff just wouldn’t do justice to its dark storyline. The voice
actors were superbly cast and their spoken dialogue gave me the only moments to
totally engross myself into the game. So rich and full of character and depth –
it really is fantastic. Listening to them did not irritate me as voice-acting in
games usually do and believe me, that’s a plus.
…but mostly not.
My final thoughts on Baldur’s Gate: Dark Alliance is that it can be
improved upon, by making the story less ambiguous and more involving without
making it feel like an afterthought. The gameplay aspect could definitely be
less tedious and provide more side quests or alternative options instead of its
straightforward path and linearity. If you prefer that “action” precede
“role-playing” this “Action RPG” might be worth the $30. For those who want a
balance of both elements, you’re better off looking for another title. This one
is too simple for me.
6.0
