For such a legendary CRPG it does give a terrible first impression with its intro cinematic. I mean what the hell is this cinematic is supposed to show me about the game?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hoSqDtky0pU

Starts off with the Abyss quote from Nietzsche which I have no idea how it applies to the following scenes or the whole game in general.

Then some random guy appeares at the top of this tower who has a very dumb looking helmet. And then this Obviously evil character appears in evil looking armor and voiced by Kevin Michael Richardson in his bad guy voice.

"I will be the last" the last of what?

And then the other guy quotes "wait there are others I can show you" what are these 'others' are you talking about.

And then evil guy kills him and then the title logo "BALDUR'S GATE" appears.

The intro tells me nothing about the game. I mean this intro is certainly no Fallout 1 or Diablo 2 thats for sure :P

Agreed. The intro really leaves you in the dark. Apart from "Evil armor guy is a badass", I didn't get much from it when I was a kid. Now that I think about it though, that quote in the beginning would have been perfect for Baldur's Gate 2.

But it IS cool that you can actually go to the location of the cinematic in the game and if you inspect the fence, I think it says something like "Looks like it was recently repaired". :)

The intro was awesome -- especially for its day. You are asking a bunch of questions. And they're all the right questions.

And suddenly, you're a rodent-hunting boy raised in privileged circumstances. But soon, you'll be just as entangled as the man who made the fall.

It gets you to ask questions. It's foreshadow. And it's introducing the main villain. I loved it.

That said, I think my favorite from that era was Warlords Battlecry 2. I love Gandalfian wizards of extreme but unknown power. And I love action sequences.

I recently got Sacred 3 for the XBOX with Games With Gold and although the game is only fair, the into is super-awesome. It's a beautifully rendered action sequence of a group of heroes taking out group of bad guys and rescuing a girl.

You did play the game(s), didn't you? That intro actually tells you a lot about the game/story. Once you play through it, it's pretty easy to see how.

I don't think it's supposed to tell you of the game, it's more like an enigmatic teaser that starts the story. As you play the game and the story unfolds, you will learn who the evil guy is, why he kills the random guy, and last of whom does he want to be.

As for the Nietzsche quote, I'm not sure but you will be fighting monsters in the game and if you like you can be monstrous too. I think they just thought it was a cool quote.

Terrible First Impression? Hardly, the animation was quite good and it introduces you to the idea that something terrible is going down in Baldur's Gate, which unless you have done too much research is all you should know about the game.

sure its not a full on plot synopsis, but for a 30 second introduction its perfect.

Who are the "others" the guard is refering to? Why did the armored dude killed him?
All of these questions are raised and are very important to the story and the quote from Nietzsche is relevant later on the series(depending on how you play it).

As others have said above. The idea is to start you asking questions. Its one of the better intros I have seen.

Its been awhile since I have beaten the game. All I remember is that the villian Sarevok is one of the Bhaalspawn to Bhaal the God of Death and he gains power by people dying. So he's trying to insitgate conflict between the Sword Coast and Amn with the Iron Shortage and thus a war could start that will kill thousands and all those deaths will empower Sarevok and your main character is a Bhaalspawn and Sarevok wants to kill you because your competition

It begins with a mystery - the game wouldn't be showing this if it wasn't relevant to the player. If it failed to ignite your interest, then fair enough, but don’t expect to be handed an explanation right off the bat in every game. Sometimes the point is to go out and find one.

I've cooled on that Nietzsche quote though. Back then was the first time I saw it, and now it seems to be commonly found in gaming. Too Human and Legends of Eisenwald for starters if memory serves.

The Lord of Murder. The 'others' referred to in the cinematic are the other Bhaalspawn.
Your entire story revolves around what you decide to do when you figure out you're a Bhaalspawn as well. Do you embrace your heritage and try to take the dead god's place? Or do you keep your humanity?
That guy in the 'dumb looking helmet' is Sarevok, who wants to be the last surviving Bhaalspawn so he can ascend to become the new Lord of Murder.

The intro tells you everything about the game/story. But like any good prelude or intro, it only makes sense when you play the game and discover how the plot unfolds.

"The guy in Dumb Looking Helmet" is not referring to Sarevok but the guy he killed.

Major BG1 spoiler inc!

He gains power by killing other Bhaalspawn. Like the dude with the funny horned helm he (the evil dude) kicks down in the intro. Its 100% game story related and was very well done for its time.

With "the others" he was refering to other Bhaalspawns in a failed try to bargain with S.

edit2: ninjad by GR00T

Another Bhaalspawn. Who tries to keep Sarevok from killing him by telling Sarevok he knows where other Bhaalspawn are. Which Sarevok doesn't care about because Sarevok knows he can find the others himself.

Alright then do we here any mention of this "Dumb Looking Helmet guy" anywhere in the game other then the intro and the location we find in the city?