Baldur’s Gate: Enhanced Edition

BG is a CRPG, which means: It has a niche.
This game is entirely different to the modern BG3. Don't come with the same expectations.
Why play this?
You want a complex game system (Magic, combat)
You like to experiment with character builds
The story is really good
You like DnD and have that scratch to play a DnD-like game (Check for more games in the CRPG tag, if this is a check for you)
Replayability. The variety of classes and companions make for an entertaining game to replay, where you can test your knowledge of the game, and making op builds, or meme builds
You like to roleplay in-game: The game makes you feel part of the story, it makes a good job to feel relevant to the plot
Why avoid this?
Too much information, it has a high learning curve on the combat system (all class' abilities, spells and system properties like THAC0, may be too much information)
You don't like turn-based ARPGs. Even though the game is real time, all events happen in rounds of 6 seconds, and the pause makes it still a turn-based game.
Art, I understand that as much as I may like the art and look & feel, it is outdated by today's standards and may not be popular.
You don't like dying. In this game you will quicksave often, because you will die often, it is nothing bad, as you will learn and develop ways to deal with situations, but if that stresses you, well... CRPGs may not be for you
Recommendation for a first run
Just choose a race that sounds cool or you want to roleplay as. Choose a class that sounds fun (Spellcasters like wizards or sorcerers may have a lot of information for a first timer if you want to play as a spellcaster. If you want to use magic, I'd recommend half casters like Clerics, it hits hard with melee, and will give you time to adapt to the magic system). Spin the stat die until you get 86+ stat points. SAVE YOUR CHARACTER (Or you will need to respin that die and waste your time). And once you start, just roleplay as your character, learn the system at your pace, it will take time, but if you have patience, you will find a really complex and interesting game, that will entertain you for 100+ hours. Save often (Quicksave with Q).
Any unoptimized build can beat the game on normal/core rules, so there is no need to feel pressured because you aren't min-maxing good enough (And if you feel the game is easy or hard, you can change the difficulty at any moment).

One of the all-time greats. A word of advice, even if you heed nothing else: the lack of direction in the early game is a feature, not a flaw. Explore each map, engage with quests and unmarked events, and reach at least level 2 or 3 before engaging with the main quest. Keep a varied party in mind: an archer (particularly equipped with arrows of biting), a thief, a warrior, and a mage of some description will make your life easier. But most of all, make your own character and commit to roleplaying. Baldur's Gate rewards that kind of engagement.

This review comes from someone who gave up on this game, only to come back to try again and absolutely falling in love.
As many "normies" nowadays, I come from Baldur's Gate 3 yearning more from this world and having a immense curiosity as to what birthed the illustrious BG3.
Originally I gave this game about 2-3 hours of my time about a year ago; I just couldn't get into the game at all. It felt dated, very easy to die making it feel like a drag, and is an RTS vs a TBS (BG3) which pushed me even further back.
From influence of a good friend playing through this series, I decided to give the game another chance... I may have judged face value way too early.
I ended up doing a full on evil playthrough and also ended up throwing in some good people in the mix to stir the pot and ensue chaos (as I tend to love doing in games). An evil playthrough was fun in a stance where it truly felt I was evil and people did hate me; it reminded me that today's evil standards really have been skewed to the point where it's all just a "softcore lawful evil". In this game I truly felt the punishing factors of being Chaotic Evil (hardly any exp gain, barely any gold, people wouldn't bother with me, etc) and it made me reconsider to neutral evil to lawful evil throughout my playthrough to be able to catch up and not make the game feel any harder than it is starting off.
The wide variety of companions in this game is so vast, I can confidently say I've only experienced 15% of them and I ran through a good 10 companions; if you couldn't find someone you love in a game, I'm sure in the plethora of people you run through, you will find your perfect companion somewhere in this game. Without spoiler territory, I will name drop names that I thoroughly enjoyed in my playthrough: Viconia, Dorn, Edwin, Baeloth, Khalid, Neera, and Corwin. Since companions permanently die in this game: you have to go through the tedious task of picking all of their equipment whilst managing weight capacity and going through 90% of the game without the ability to resurrect on the spot, I highly recommend Quick saving almost every time you expect an encounter/after an encounter to save you countless minutes of your time.
Combat can be rough around the edges as you will notice you will miss... A LOT. Your early game spells suck and also can be easily disrupted. Rangers feel like Gabi from Attack on Titan where they will just absolutely never miss and OBLITERATE YOU from existence. What helped me a lot was relating it to other games I have played and loved; OSRS (Runescape), Morrowind, Dungeon of the Endless, and Dragon Age Origins. You may miss, land your hits, or land a juicy critical hit, You may cast your spell or you may have it cancel/fail. There is no "turns" since its real time strategy, but you can most definitely "see" when "turns" occur in combat and get used to timing. What also helped was learning to strafe attacks and to pause to strategize and grasp the whole scenario.
Overall the story including Siege of Dragonspear I found very enjoyable and an absolute journey. Graphics, voice acting, and other obvious noteables aside, Baldur's Gate 1 holds its own very well for today's present time against many triple A RPG's currently out. The music is memorable and ascending. The dialogue between companions and NPCs are something to look forward to. The challenge this game brought me was very fun and kept me on my toes every fight. I can truly go on.
TLDR:
- Former hater turned lover
- Combat is easy to get into when comparing it to games like Runescape, DA: Origins, Morrowind, etc.
- BG3 fans looking for lore, story, companions, expanding the lore and love of BG3 GIVE THIS GAME A SHOT PLEASE
- Here's New Modern take review that might also help you get into the game that I highly recommend watching/listening to:
Now on to Baldur's Gate II :)

Truly, deeply tremendous. This is one of the greatest classic RPG's of all time. Even in 2024, it holds up. You'd be stunned at how simple mechanics like world travel taking days, fog of war, and organically stumbling on quests can make the world feel so massive, dangerous, and alive.

If you're new, find a guide, this was from back in the day where games came with explanatory booklets that you were expected to read, so the systems can be muddy and obtuse. But don't skip this.

10/10
I've been coming back to this game Since 1999 when it came with 6 separate discs. It absolutely still holds up 26 years later.

Pros:-
- The added Enhanced edition characters bring some great dialogue. (Purists hate them)
- Great Class and race variety.
- Hundreds of weapons, armours, wands and other items to use.
- intricate tactical combat.
- Beginner friendly with a plethora of guides and youtube videos to help you plan and gear up.
- You can Import your main character straight into Fall of Dragonspear then/or Baldurs Gate 2 to continue your characters story.

Cons:-
- Character models haven't aged well.
- A lot of reading required to understand the story fully.
- Character stats and abilities not explained very well and will probably require third party guides.

If you like Role playing games then this is a must!

Bought for nostalgia. Started today to play for maybe 15 minutes and move on to something else. I'm like 4 hours in... It's not just nostalgia, they really did use to make them way, way better than now.

Baldur's Gate: Enhanced Edition
I just replayed the original Baldur's Gate over a few days. Why? Honestly, I’m not sure—I had a sudden urge to revisit a game I loved and beat as a kid but never fully understood mechanically. I figured I’d create a character (Half-elf Conjuror) and bounce off it after an hour or two, due to its age.
I was pleasantly surprised to find myself locked in for hours.
It’s kind of amazing how well this game holds up, considering it’s 27 years old (!). That says a lot about the staying power of the CRPG genre—and the quality of the original. The Enhanced Edition (2013) (“EE”) deserves credit here, too: it allows for modern resolutions and quality-of-life tweaks that make a big difference. The hand-painted backdrops and stylized sprites still look charming enough that the dated visuals never pulled me out of the experience.
I’ve always had fond memories of the characters—Minsc, Jaheira, Imoen—but I was surprised by how little dialogue or interaction they actually have in the first game. Most companions have 2–3 lines and then more or less fade into the background.
Still, they’re strong archetypes, and their personalities come through clearly from their introductions. I realized that a lot of my emotional connection to them comes from Baldur’s Gate II, which gives them far more depth. However, their presence here is still meaningful, especially if you’re planning to move on to the sequel.
Gameplay is where the experience really clicked for me. I remember the game being tough back in the day—but this time, playing on Core Rules, I found it quite manageable. Understanding the AD&D ruleset and knowing how to build a party made a huge difference. It’s extremely satisfying to use the right buffs, counters, and spell combinations at the right time.
That said, it’s a slow burn. Early levels can feel restrictive—my Conjuror could only slightly contribute to most fights until I hit level 5. But once I had access to level 3 spells and the Ring of Wizardry, everything opened up. With a solid party (Dynaheir, Jaheira, and others), I could buff, debuff, and nuke with confidence. From that point on, combat felt genuinely rewarding.
Tip: The game runs slowly by default. You can edit the .ini file to raise the framerate cap from 30 to 45 or 60 FPS—it makes a huge difference in pacing and responsiveness.
The Enhanced Edition adds new companions and the Siege of Dragonspear expansion (released in 2016 by Beamdog, not Bioware) that bridges the story between BG1 and BG2. I tried the new companions when EE launched and they never quite fit—they felt tonally off compared to the originals. So I skipped them this time.
As for Siege of Dragonspear, it kicks in right after the final cutscene of BG1. I gave it about an hour, but I had the same reaction—something about the writing and atmosphere didn’t feel quite right, so I’d rather move on to Baldur’s Gate II. Maybe it’s just me, but it lacked the charm of the original. I always felt that the story didn’t need “bridging” between BG1 and BG2.
Was this playthrough nostalgia-fueled? Probably. But it was also fun—about 45 hours of it. Baldur’s Gate remains a landmark title, and even with its slower early game and some light companion content, it still delivers a rich, strategic, and surprisingly immersive experience.
If you're a fan of isometric RPGs, tactical combat, or D&D-style systems, this game is absolutely worth a visit. Just be patient at the start, tweak the framerate, and embrace the magic.
Verdict: 8/10
Still a gem. Not perfect, but damn satisfying - especially if you want to continue into Baldur's Gate II.