MRY
Wormwood Studios
I share Kyl Von Kull's view (as I've mentioned before) that Dark Sun is at its best before you escape the the arena, but I think the re-revisionist view that it's a mediocre game is wrong.
It's really fun. It has a great setting. It lets you do cool things throughout the quests. I don't remember any "cool options" in BG quests; maybe I just forgot them, but I remember plenty of neat moments in Dark Sun quests, with obviously the genie bottle being a highlight. It accomplishes a lot of world building without a ton of text. The visuals are distinctive and memorable, even if a little hit-or-miss. In general, everything moves quickly about the game -- animations, dialogues, character movement, power progression, even gear management (at least to my recollection, maybe I'm wrong?) -- in a way that compares favorably to a lot of other RPGs. It made groundbreaking use of a bunch of features.
I'm sure I remember the game more fondly than it deserves, but I do remember it very fondly.
Also:
Maybe because I grew up a console kid, this simple intro:
appeals to me more than either of these (let alone both!):
It's really fun. It has a great setting. It lets you do cool things throughout the quests. I don't remember any "cool options" in BG quests; maybe I just forgot them, but I remember plenty of neat moments in Dark Sun quests, with obviously the genie bottle being a highlight. It accomplishes a lot of world building without a ton of text. The visuals are distinctive and memorable, even if a little hit-or-miss. In general, everything moves quickly about the game -- animations, dialogues, character movement, power progression, even gear management (at least to my recollection, maybe I'm wrong?) -- in a way that compares favorably to a lot of other RPGs. It made groundbreaking use of a bunch of features.
I'm sure I remember the game more fondly than it deserves, but I do remember it very fondly.
Also:
Meh. I didn't play BG, but I played BG2, and its story is totally unmemorable. Like, I literally can't remember it. Evil wizard with a bone to pick with elves or something, and you had to hire someone to take you to a fortress of assassins or something to rescue a girl? Utterly generic setting, characters who were either zany or boring or both. DS:SL may have a worse story and characters, but both are below licensed-D&D-book storytelling. The difference is that DS:SL has a muscular, turn-the-volume-up-to-11 mindset that is perfectly embodied/inspired by its Brom art.I’m not the world’s biggest Baldur’s Gate fan, but even using RTwP it has better combat, a better story, and more interesting characters
Maybe because I grew up a console kid, this simple intro:
appeals to me more than either of these (let alone both!):