Icewind Dale Review

Different weather conditions and the change of day and night are implemented, but I haven't noticed that these changes affect combat or NPCs that roam the streets at 2 A.M. as if it was noon.

The combat is done in a familiar fashion, and there will be a lot of it. Instead of clicking away at the opponent, the character will do the job. Your job is to pick a target and the kind of offensive spell for the characters with magical abilities, and they will, in regard to their capabilities, experience and equipment be more or less effective. This means no action and wrist pain as in Diablo. Everything is in service of creating a high-fidelity simulation of FRP (imagine a pen'n'paper adventure in which the success of attack is decided by the speed of your index finger and you will see what I'm aiming at). The adversaries are well animated and numerous. Some of them are enormous, so it's a pleasure to see a Cyclops at your feet in a pool of blood. Their skill and offensive tactics vary. Since the battles are so many, at certain points the game becomes too difficult, so it is essential to save your position and use the pause option. The game is made easier with the scripts for setting the behaviour of the members of your group. With given behaviour how to conduct themselves in certain situations, the characters will, when you are not controlling them stick to a pattern, i.e. avoid head on battle, perform magic from a safe distance, automatically treat the wounded or simply desert the battlefield. It is also possible to align the adventurers in a certain formation. This option, taken from RT strategies is not so well worked out, so the characters will change formation when the screen changes.

The AI of your opponents is painfully obvious. They will attack only when they spot a member of your group. When they pick out a target, they will keep attacking regardless of the others hurting him. This flaw makes it a whole lot easier to defeat the "tougher" enemies-you choose the fastest member of your group, get him to pick a fight, then race the map and the dullard will follow you around without counting the arrows that are hitting him. Pathfinding is the next object of criticism. Although the authors claim they devoted a lot of attention to this problem (it is even possible to determine how long your characters will think about the optimal course), often your team members will get lost on a map and have difficulties in finding the destination.

After a little negative criticism, it is time for the brightest side of the whole project-the sound effects and the soundtrack. The game supports environmental audio, but the quality of sound is not so much the technical aspect, as it is the choice and the adapting of voices to the game and environment. The people that "borrowed" their vocal chords to characters in the game did a great job! By intonation you will recognize wise old men, scared peasants or frolicking children. The pure and clear pronouncing will render the subtitle option unnecessary. The soundtrack is a story for itself. One will notice that it is not a "wall to wall" soundtrack, but the music will play in key moments adding to the atmosphere. Apart from the timing, the themes possess a certain epic quality which will make the game more appealing.

You can initiate a multiplayer game, in a similar fashion to single player mode. Apart from netplay, you can hook up with other players through LAN, serial cable or through modem. In all of these modes the group will be limited to six members, but in case the game is played by less than six, there is an option for one person to control multiple characters. Some bugs that appear in BG are fixed, but there are some still present.

I can't decide on a final advice whether to purchase Blizzards or Black Isles favourite. Although they are very similar, the concept of these two games is very different. Diablo is all about action, but Icewind Dale, even with ample action and battle, is an adventure. The best thing to do is to become the proud owner of both games.