I generally am a fan of this type of game, and I have love for Baldur's Gate 1 and 2 and the first Icewind Dale. In regard to Icewind Dale 2, I found the character building to be highly satisfying (and liked being able to have Drow, Tiefling, and Aasimir party members), and I greatly enjoyed the mechanics and challenge of combat. If that's what this game was all about, I would consider it to be a great game and one of my favorites. As some others have already mentioned, the story is not as thematic or cohesive as the first Icewind Dale, but even with a less interesting story, I still would have considered this game to be one of my favorites. The problem is the ultra annoying puzzles that do nothing for me but interrupt or interfere with the otherwise enjoyable aspects of the game. In particular, I quit playing this game toward the end, in Chapter 5 on the third floor of Dragon's Eye Peak. Though there were some annoying puzzles before this that required consulting a walkthrough (such as the prism machine on the second floor of the Ice Castle in Chapter 2 and in finding my way through the Fell Wood in Chapter 3), these prior puzzles did not detract from my enjoyment enough to not want to continue playing the game. However, when I'm having to run repeatedly back and forth between floors and then must brew or obtain a potion for the purpose of turning one of my party members into a creature in order to gain entrance through a gate, I simply have had enough of the ridiculousnesss. It was at that point I had to admit to myself that the game's annoying aspects had overshadowed its enjoyable ones, and rather than put myself through the chore of finishing the game, I decided that it was time to quit and play another game. In fact, right now I am replaying the Baldur's Gate series (specifically the enhanced versions for the first time) before I move on to other games I have not played yet, to recenter myself after enduring the frustrating experience of Icewind Dale 2.
I am a fan of the Fallout game series and enjoyed the previous games, but this one has a special place in my heart as it was released when I had more time to play games (than I do now) and was the first Fallout game to have life-like graphics. I also appreciated the music, overall story, character development, quests, and the improvements in game play (e.g., targeting system). I purchased this game already on Steam but like it so much I decided to buy it DRM-free from GOG as well, especially given the great sale price!
