Incoherent rambling I wrote when playing Baldur's Gate 2. Too much writing to just delete it but the thesis falls apart when you consider that games like Underrail and Colony Ship are still coming out.
Old RPGs Are (Almost) Dead
I do not believe in the idea of video games aging. I do, however, believe that the way we play them does. You cannot replicate the idea that permeated a school playground or an online forum of, for example, what it means to be an RPG. The story they are describing is set inside a game with pixelated graphics that communicate the bare minimum. One may look at a dragon there and a dragon in Elden Ring and just be baffled at how one can match the other. But that potential was there. People found it and extracted it and had the feeling of an epic adventure. It still is there. But it becomes increasingly more difficult to access them, to feel them. They are dying, and some are already dead.
In Baldur's Gate 2, there's a quest that has you investigate a cult where people rip their eyes out to have a chance of an awakening. To go undercover, you have to find a piece of a wand from a place deeper underground. In there, you find a temple, dedicated to a different deity than the one you are investigating. Its followers have forgotten the name of their god and as such his strength wavers and his avatar cannot defeat the evil that is overtaking him and his temple, the purpose of which was guarding the wand piece from evil.
The lesson here is you cannot make anyone remember a thing forever, even if you were to give them eternal life. The human experience is that of many experiences, and we forget. The pain more often than not makes us forget, the pain of aging or just the human condition replacing old positive memories with not just negative ones. They sometimes replace them with nothing. There are just gaps in memory. I cannot make anyone cherish these games, and the games cannot hold up themselves, even if I put out this piece of writing and let it sit forever. The followers of the forgotten deity, by the time the player meets them, hate their god. Not passionately, but dejectedly, thinking they will never be allowed to pass on. Even if you dedicate your life to something, that dedication can ruin it for you.
I gained an appreciation of titles like these thanks to the YouTuber Warlockracy, who does "narrative let's plays" through which he paints the picture of how to find enjoyment in them. I now love Morrowind because I listened to him talk about how it is largely its own medium where a player can tell their own stories, and then proceeds to do just that. My next attempt at Morrowind succeeded because I decided to leave anything I tried before and figured I would like to have this character I am creating to try and gain money fast by working as a guard. I figured a government job would pay well and provide good equipment and I was not disappointed. I am still figuring out how to approach classic Fallout in the way he talks about it, but I keep giving it a try now and then. One day it might click.
He also has a video on Baldur's Gate, but his playstyle is not at all like mine. As such I thought I could try doing something similar to his style of content, but for a more standard playthrough, to maybe help one or two people enjoy these games more. I wrote down tips such as "make as efficient of a party as possible to get through regular fights much easier" and "save up wands for the hardest encounters." But these do not work, do they? They don't make you want to play these games and they don't help you experience them like I did. They may unlock that potential but they don't lead you down that road.
Instead, I think the only way, at my current writing skill level, is to speak of the adventures I had. You might stop playing 10 minutes in. I did, about 20 times in fact, before actually moving on past chapter four. In most of these attempts, I didn't even complete the prologue. You may try co-op only to find out how difficult it is to coordinate on something this hard to grasp for 70 hours. I did. Twice. If at any point you read these descriptions, however, and think "How does one experience these through this jumbled mess of a UI and tiny pixelated character models," all I can say is: play it to find out.
My journey started in Candlekeep, where I was raised to combat spellcasters. My father, Gorion, was one himself and knew how dangerous magic can be. His fascination with magic items always made him feel a bit distant, and the way he spoke made me want to avoid all forms of such power.
Many years later, Gorion told me suddenly that he had planned a trip for both of us. It was something he had been planning for a little bit now, clearly knowing something was afoot. The attempts on my life inside the walls which occurred on the day we were to leave only confirmed his suspicions, and even though he had not told me what was in store for us I trusted him. Outside the city gates, we were ambushed, and Father told me to run. Though he has slain multiple of the assailants, the big one with a horned helmet eventually crushed him.
Here is where my tale begins to grow to epic proportions. Imoen, who grew up with me in the keep, caught up to me, my one new companion, but the empty fields before me seemed to be endless. I could travel in any direction, but I was struck with choice paralysis. Gorion gave me directions to a nearby fortress where friends would await us, and I could not think about any other path. I was scared and wanted directions. Thankfully upon reaching the inn at said location, I found some.
But the mines that I liberated with my new companions soon after were merely the beginning. The tough fight at the very end helped me realize the power that magic can hold, and how communicating with my teammates and friendly spellcasters can turn the tide of battle. What Gorion could achieve was impressive, but he was just one man. Together, maybe this could work. I traveled the land far and wide in search of magical artifacts to strengthen me and my allies before we chased my father’s murderer further.
One of these locations was a forest infested with spiders. It was filled with spider-web traps that would prevent all of my teammates from moving, all the while fast spiders with knife-like legs would slice us up. Each fight cost us time, as we had to rest before we proceeded any further, and were awoken many times by ambushes. It was weeks of sleeping in that one forest, unsure of what would come next. Above it all loomed a big dome made of spider webs. It was a nest of evil. I felt the need to destroy what was inside.
But I could not have expected a human form to control these spiders. It was sprawling, distorted, but still visibly human. She was cursed, as she says. But that is all I learned before she would attack alongside her army of spiders who charged right at me. Knowing I could not take them all in their den, I ran outside, baiting them out in groups and using healing spells and potions before going back in. One of our companions, a wild mage, unleashed fierce fireballs that decimated them as we went back inside but hurt some of us as well. Eventually, we were victorious. Barely standing, we had another rest in front of the structure. Thankfully, this one was uninterrupted.
For my troubles, I obtained Spider’s Bane, a two-handed sword that would prove to be my most reliable weapon for the rest of my time chasing my father’s killer. It was enchanted, but I decided to wield it regardless. I realized my conviction against magic died with Gorion. My training made my body unable to use some trinkets, but if this sword would allow me to avenge him, so be it. I set out for the town of Baldur’s Gate.
There I eventually confronted the villain. To find him I had to be chased around like a criminal, I had to learn of Gorion’s secrets, and my whole worldview was reshaped as I learned of who I was in the grand puppet play of the gods. But I persevered. Though the final battle was chaotic, with summoned allies and my companions falling in battle, I dealt the last blow with a weapon that symbolized my conviction. It turned out the abandonment of the past, back when I first picked it up, was merely a prelude to how much I would have to leave behind.
But (sorry for a terrible transition) I do not want to abandon Baldur’s Gate 1 and 2. I am in the process of playing through the second game for the first time, and though I felt sad enough about the possibility of these experiences fading away to write this piece, I am incredibly excited that the series got the enhanced editions by Beamdog and that the third installment somehow reached the same heights critically as its predecessors did. But it will undoubtedly overshadow them even harder, just like Witcher 3 did to the two games that came before it.
I simply hope that the sort of experiences that are becoming less and less popular are still able to reach some people. They might never be as popular as they used to be, but these are undoubtedly experiences some people still search for. Games like The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind, Baldur’s Gate 1 and 2, Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscura, Fallout 1 and 2 all provide storytelling possibilities that are hard to find even in current year’s incredibly impressive lineup of titles. Only these games provided me with them, so seeing them phased out into the indie sphere at best, and even then rarely, is something I am having a hard time with.
Old RPGs Are (Almost) Dead
I do not believe in the idea of video games aging. I do, however, believe that the way we play them does. You cannot replicate the idea that permeated a school playground or an online forum of, for example, what it means to be an RPG. The story they are describing is set inside a game with pixelated graphics that communicate the bare minimum. One may look at a dragon there and a dragon in Elden Ring and just be baffled at how one can match the other. But that potential was there. People found it and extracted it and had the feeling of an epic adventure. It still is there. But it becomes increasingly more difficult to access them, to feel them. They are dying, and some are already dead.
In Baldur's Gate 2, there's a quest that has you investigate a cult where people rip their eyes out to have a chance of an awakening. To go undercover, you have to find a piece of a wand from a place deeper underground. In there, you find a temple, dedicated to a different deity than the one you are investigating. Its followers have forgotten the name of their god and as such his strength wavers and his avatar cannot defeat the evil that is overtaking him and his temple, the purpose of which was guarding the wand piece from evil.
The lesson here is you cannot make anyone remember a thing forever, even if you were to give them eternal life. The human experience is that of many experiences, and we forget. The pain more often than not makes us forget, the pain of aging or just the human condition replacing old positive memories with not just negative ones. They sometimes replace them with nothing. There are just gaps in memory. I cannot make anyone cherish these games, and the games cannot hold up themselves, even if I put out this piece of writing and let it sit forever. The followers of the forgotten deity, by the time the player meets them, hate their god. Not passionately, but dejectedly, thinking they will never be allowed to pass on. Even if you dedicate your life to something, that dedication can ruin it for you.
I gained an appreciation of titles like these thanks to the YouTuber Warlockracy, who does "narrative let's plays" through which he paints the picture of how to find enjoyment in them. I now love Morrowind because I listened to him talk about how it is largely its own medium where a player can tell their own stories, and then proceeds to do just that. My next attempt at Morrowind succeeded because I decided to leave anything I tried before and figured I would like to have this character I am creating to try and gain money fast by working as a guard. I figured a government job would pay well and provide good equipment and I was not disappointed. I am still figuring out how to approach classic Fallout in the way he talks about it, but I keep giving it a try now and then. One day it might click.
He also has a video on Baldur's Gate, but his playstyle is not at all like mine. As such I thought I could try doing something similar to his style of content, but for a more standard playthrough, to maybe help one or two people enjoy these games more. I wrote down tips such as "make as efficient of a party as possible to get through regular fights much easier" and "save up wands for the hardest encounters." But these do not work, do they? They don't make you want to play these games and they don't help you experience them like I did. They may unlock that potential but they don't lead you down that road.
Instead, I think the only way, at my current writing skill level, is to speak of the adventures I had. You might stop playing 10 minutes in. I did, about 20 times in fact, before actually moving on past chapter four. In most of these attempts, I didn't even complete the prologue. You may try co-op only to find out how difficult it is to coordinate on something this hard to grasp for 70 hours. I did. Twice. If at any point you read these descriptions, however, and think "How does one experience these through this jumbled mess of a UI and tiny pixelated character models," all I can say is: play it to find out.
My journey started in Candlekeep, where I was raised to combat spellcasters. My father, Gorion, was one himself and knew how dangerous magic can be. His fascination with magic items always made him feel a bit distant, and the way he spoke made me want to avoid all forms of such power.
Many years later, Gorion told me suddenly that he had planned a trip for both of us. It was something he had been planning for a little bit now, clearly knowing something was afoot. The attempts on my life inside the walls which occurred on the day we were to leave only confirmed his suspicions, and even though he had not told me what was in store for us I trusted him. Outside the city gates, we were ambushed, and Father told me to run. Though he has slain multiple of the assailants, the big one with a horned helmet eventually crushed him.
Here is where my tale begins to grow to epic proportions. Imoen, who grew up with me in the keep, caught up to me, my one new companion, but the empty fields before me seemed to be endless. I could travel in any direction, but I was struck with choice paralysis. Gorion gave me directions to a nearby fortress where friends would await us, and I could not think about any other path. I was scared and wanted directions. Thankfully upon reaching the inn at said location, I found some.
But the mines that I liberated with my new companions soon after were merely the beginning. The tough fight at the very end helped me realize the power that magic can hold, and how communicating with my teammates and friendly spellcasters can turn the tide of battle. What Gorion could achieve was impressive, but he was just one man. Together, maybe this could work. I traveled the land far and wide in search of magical artifacts to strengthen me and my allies before we chased my father’s murderer further.
One of these locations was a forest infested with spiders. It was filled with spider-web traps that would prevent all of my teammates from moving, all the while fast spiders with knife-like legs would slice us up. Each fight cost us time, as we had to rest before we proceeded any further, and were awoken many times by ambushes. It was weeks of sleeping in that one forest, unsure of what would come next. Above it all loomed a big dome made of spider webs. It was a nest of evil. I felt the need to destroy what was inside.
But I could not have expected a human form to control these spiders. It was sprawling, distorted, but still visibly human. She was cursed, as she says. But that is all I learned before she would attack alongside her army of spiders who charged right at me. Knowing I could not take them all in their den, I ran outside, baiting them out in groups and using healing spells and potions before going back in. One of our companions, a wild mage, unleashed fierce fireballs that decimated them as we went back inside but hurt some of us as well. Eventually, we were victorious. Barely standing, we had another rest in front of the structure. Thankfully, this one was uninterrupted.
For my troubles, I obtained Spider’s Bane, a two-handed sword that would prove to be my most reliable weapon for the rest of my time chasing my father’s killer. It was enchanted, but I decided to wield it regardless. I realized my conviction against magic died with Gorion. My training made my body unable to use some trinkets, but if this sword would allow me to avenge him, so be it. I set out for the town of Baldur’s Gate.
There I eventually confronted the villain. To find him I had to be chased around like a criminal, I had to learn of Gorion’s secrets, and my whole worldview was reshaped as I learned of who I was in the grand puppet play of the gods. But I persevered. Though the final battle was chaotic, with summoned allies and my companions falling in battle, I dealt the last blow with a weapon that symbolized my conviction. It turned out the abandonment of the past, back when I first picked it up, was merely a prelude to how much I would have to leave behind.
But (sorry for a terrible transition) I do not want to abandon Baldur’s Gate 1 and 2. I am in the process of playing through the second game for the first time, and though I felt sad enough about the possibility of these experiences fading away to write this piece, I am incredibly excited that the series got the enhanced editions by Beamdog and that the third installment somehow reached the same heights critically as its predecessors did. But it will undoubtedly overshadow them even harder, just like Witcher 3 did to the two games that came before it.
I simply hope that the sort of experiences that are becoming less and less popular are still able to reach some people. They might never be as popular as they used to be, but these are undoubtedly experiences some people still search for. Games like The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind, Baldur’s Gate 1 and 2, Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscura, Fallout 1 and 2 all provide storytelling possibilities that are hard to find even in current year’s incredibly impressive lineup of titles. Only these games provided me with them, so seeing them phased out into the indie sphere at best, and even then rarely, is something I am having a hard time with.