Baldur's Gate 2 Shadows of Amn Review

I played on: Mac, Steam Deck
I paid: £16.75 on Steam
Available on: Windows, Mac, SteamOS, Ios, Android, PS4, Xbox One, Switch
Notes: My reviews for the other games in the series can be found by clicking here.
I played the Enhanced Edition which plays almost the same as the original but with modern resolution sizes, and a few quality-of-life improvements.

1998 saw the release of the first Baldur’s Gate game. It was a landmark CRPG that acted as an example of what the genre was capable of. BioWare had earned their place in gaming history. Only a year later they followed up the masterpiece with an expansion that added even more to the already content packed game. It was only another year after the expansion until the original Baldur’s Gate was graced with a sequel. BioWare were able to achieve this fast turn-a-around due to the sequel using the same game engine and graphics. Was Baldur’s Gate 2 just an overpriced expansion or a worthy successor to one of gaming’s best? Let’s take a closer look and find out!

First of all, it cannot be understated just how much this game has in common with its predecessor. It looks the same, it sounds the same, and it plays the same. The good part of this is that we get more of what made Baldur’s Gate 1 so great. The problem is that we don’t get to see any of the problems fixed, graphics improved, and gameplay expanded upon. For better, and for worse, this is the same old Baldur’s Gate, warts and all, from the first game.

You view the game from an isometric perspective with a fixed camera that can be zoomed in and out but not rotated. This is similar to the first 2 Fallout games or the first Diablo title. While the game gives the illusion of 3D graphics, it’s using prerendered backgrounds with 2D sprites. The end result of this is a game that looks stunning when you pull the camera back and take in the scale of the environments. When you zoom in to the action things start to look a lot less impressive. This is where the game shows its age. After all this is a game from the year 2000, making it well over 20 years old, at this point. Even the Enhanced Edition is over 10 years old. This is an old game and characters becoming blurry pixelated messes when you zoom in is a sure sign of that.

The gameplay is based on the Advanced Dungeons and Dragons 2nd edition ruleset. This may take some getting used to for those of us coming into this game from the much newer 5th edition ruleset. The lack of a tutorial really hurts this game here. Although most players will be coming into this one from the first and as such will most likely already know how to play. You control a party of up to 6 members, each with a race and class of their own. Each race and class have their unique abilities and skills. Thieves can detect, disarm, and set traps, as well as pick locks. Wizards on the other hand can wield powerful magic. Barbarians are simple folk that know that often a simple whack with the biggest weapons around will do the trick. Unlike modern D&D, classes are race locked. This means that you can’t have a half-orc wizard or a gnome bard. This limits the characters you can make and it’s disappointing to see when coming from Baldur’s Gate 3. You can create your own character when starting a new game or import your character from the first game. This is what I did, and it works well. Although you’re able to create a full party when starting a new game, it’s not necessary. Right from the beginning you’re able to find and recruit companions to help you during your adventure. These are amazingly written so I would advise that you give them a go. I found Neera to be one of my favourite companions. Her quest was very interesting and followed on from her introduction in the previous Baldur’s Gate. 

The game is best played using a mouse and keyboard in my experience. That being said it is possible to only use the mouse. You can access every option via onscreen buttons that also have keyboard shortcuts. I found these shortcuts very useful but if you’re playing on a tablet with no keyboard then you can manage just fine using only the touchscreen. You click the environment to move your party to that spot or on objects of interest to interact with them. Most problems have more than one solution. When you find a locked door for example, you can pick the lock with a thief, break it open with a strong character, or have a magic user cast knock to unlock it. Of course, you could also just explore the area around you to find the key. It’s this freedom that makes the game so replayable. The biggest problem with the gameplay is how hard it can be in places. Difficulty is fine. My problem was that I felt myself being pushed into exploiting the rest function in the same way I did in the first game. I should not be able to leave a den of vampires in order to pop into the local inn for a night’s sleep, only to return the next day and continue my onslaught.

The thing that Shadows of Amn does better than anything else is its story and world building. We pick up directly after the end of Baldur’s Gate’s the Siege of Dragonspear expansion. We’ve been captured by the mysterious hooded figure that haunted us during our encounter with the Shining Lady Caelar Argent. After months of being tortured at the hands of this hooded man, who we now know to be called Jon Irenicus, we’re able to escape. This is thanks to our childhood friend, Imoen, from the first game. During this prison break we learn that some of our previous companions have been tortured to death by this monster. This hit me hard. I’d spent around 60 real world hours adventuring with these characters by my side. From this moment, I wanted this Irenicus dead. We eventually make it out of our prison and find ourselves in the city of Athkatla within the nation of Amn. We find Irenicus being confronted by an unknown attacking force. He dispatches them with ease using his powerful magic before turning his attention to us. We’re saved by Imoen, again, before the local wizard’s guild descends upon the battle. Both Irenicus and Imoen are captured and teleported to an unknown and secretive magical asylum. It’s up to us and our companions to find and save Imoen as well as putting a stop to Irenicus.

After hearing so much about Amn during the first game it was a pleasure to be able to explore it for myself. I found the sequel to be slightly more linear than its predecessor. There is still a lot to explore and find, like the first game. It’s just after you find your way to the magical asylum it’s a long time before you’re able to freely explore the world map again. You’re contained within smaller more dense areas for a while. These were enjoyable in their own way but a different experience from what I was expecting. These include places such as the magical asylum Spellhold, the ever-dangerous Underdark, and a foreboding pocket dimension of Hell, as well as others. As a massive fan of the Underdark this was a real treat. We even get to help a group of Githyanki prisoners break free from an Illithid city. This was a personal highlight of my adventure thanks to my love of Baldur’s Gate 3. Sadly, there was not a section where we could interact with my favourite race, the Myconids. They only appear as enemies and not NPC’s you can talk to and help.

Ultimately Baldur’s Gate 2 Shadows of Amn isn’t perfect. Sadly, it still has the same problems that plagued its predecessor such as exploitable mechanics and dated visuals. It more than makes up for these, however, by delivering us more of the fantastic world building and storytelling from the first game. Like that game, this is easily some of the best world building in all of gaming. Similar to the region between Baldur’s Gate and the Cloud peaks we explored in Baldur’s Gate 1, I’ve come to love Amn. On top of that we also got to explore areas outside of the Sword Coast such as the Underdark. This is a gaming experience that you really should give a go.

Recommendation Rating: 8 out of 10.