I'm a huge fan of RPGs both recent and old, mainstream and indie, PC and various gaming consoles. I'm also a huge fan of most games set in the Forgotten Realms. I bought this game expecting nothing less than to fall in love with it and be among those who looked up to it as a master among RPGs. Unfortunately, this was one of the least immersive RPGs I've ever played. While I give the game immense credit for its character customization system, the other parts of the game fall flat. The game HUD and overall visual appearance is cluttered, confusing to learn, and suffocates your ability to enjoy the world around you. The story is cliche, although the game gets a pass for this because of its age. Battling with more than one character seems designed for a turn-based system rather than the real-time system it supports, and makes it so that the player is more likely to just spam generic attacks than to set up each follower individually. Traversing the world is tedious; your characters move slowly and you are required to click each time you want them to move, despite other games of the genre having the "advanced" design of clicking and holding for continued movement. Last but not least, and this was the game killer for me: the game relies too heavily on trial and error and "do or die" events. I have seen this flaw echoed in other reviews here, and this was the final thing I just couldn't get past. Too often you are required to make split second decisions that could kill your entire party if you pick the choice you THINK is right and force you to reload your last save (and losing progress, naturally). On one hand, Baldur's Gate is fairly unique for this concept, and players who know the game inside out should know which choices to pick in further playthroughs. On the other hand, perhaps this is unique for a reason. Overall, I am greatly disappointed in Baldur's Gate. Although I did also buy the sequel and have yet to try it, I no longer have high expectations.
I personally got into the Sacred universe through a 360 copy of Sacred 2, and it quickly rose to be one of my all-time favorite games, and Ancaria was one of my top 5 video game worlds (vast, varied, beautiful, and nearly limitless secrets to discover). I picked this up during one of GOG's sales, and I have to say...I wasn't disappointed in the least. Sacred Gold takes all the best elements of other hack n' slash RPGs and adds tidbits that others don't have that simply make it better. Different storyline objectives based on the character you pick? Check. Humor? Check. An unbelievably massive world? Yep, it has that, too. Sacred Gold is the perfect hack n' slash for people who love exploring...the developers clearly adored working on this world, as secrets, hidden paths, and hidden treasures are awaiting those explorers like me who love searching for them. I can't stress enough--this game is a top tier in its genre, and one not to be passed up. This game has potentially hundreds of hours to be had in enjoyment for those of us who love to lose ourselves in another world as deeply cared for by its developers as it is richly detailed. If you don't have this, buy it. Otherwise, you'll be missing out.
