Icewind Dale
| Icewind Dale | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 | |||
| Studio | Black Isle Studios | ||
| Publisher | Interplay entertainment | ||
| Senior Developer |
Chris Avellone , Joshua E. Sawyer |
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| Erstveröffent- lichung |
May 2000 | ||
| platform | Windows , Mac OS X | ||
| Game engine | Infinity engine | ||
| genre | RPG | ||
| Game mode | Single player , multiplayer | ||
| control | Mouse , keyboard | ||
| medium | 2 CDs or 1 DVD-ROM , download | ||
| language | German | ||
| Current version | 1.06 (without add-on, August 17, 2000) | ||
| Age rating |
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Icewind Dale is a computer role-playing game by the US developer Black Isle Studios from the year 2000, which is based on the role-playing game rules Advanced Dungeons & Dragons . It was released for Windows and Mac OS X and distributed by Interplay Entertainment . In the game, the player creates a group of heroes who are supposed to avert an unknown threat to the arctic ice wind valley. After Baldur's Gate and Planescape: Torment, Icewind Dale is the third title in the so-called Infinity Games, which means that it also uses the Infinity Engine from the Canadian developer BioWare and therefore has numerous playful and content-related similarities to these titles.
action
As with Baldur's Gate, the setting is the campaign world of the Forgotten Realms . However, the action takes place in the region of the Ice Wind Valley, which is further north of Baldur's Gate, the area of control of the so-called Ten Cities. The starting point is the fishing village of Osthafen. The player's group of heroes joins an expedition to Kuldahar. For some time now, the village has been increasingly suffering from the weakening of its magical oak tree and attacks by monsters from the surrounding mountains and is therefore asking the surrounding cities for support. On the way, the caravan is ambushed from which the group is the only one able to escape alive. From now on, your task is to uncover the background to the monster attacks and to bring down those responsible. From Kuldahar, the group of heroes travels large parts of the Eiswindtal, u. a. the Valley of Shadows, the old Elven Keep of the Severed Hand, the Dragon's Eye and the subterranean dwarf city of Dorntief.
Game principle and technology
In contrast to Baldur's Gate , the focus of Icewind Dale is on the tactical battles, which can be paused at any time by pressing a button. Usually the characters fight their way through gloomy caves or blazing volcanoes for hours. The plot is kept strictly linear and offers few side quests.
At the beginning of the game, the player puts together a group of heroes with a maximum of six members, which can consist of warriors, priests, thieves, magicians and other classes. He can determine the appearance, voice, skills and the name of each individual character. If you want, you can think up and enter a biography of the character. In contrast to the other Infinity games, there are no characters in the course of the game that you could add to your troop. There are therefore no party interactions or special orders.
As usual in pen & paper role-playing games, the heroes receive experience points for solving puzzles and killing opponents. If a certain threshold is reached, the character rises one level. He receives additional life points and, depending on the class, new skills or the opportunity to improve existing skills. Unlike in Baldur's Gate , the characters can at least level up to level 15, depending on the class higher. Thus, magicians can enjoy really powerful spells.
Unlike other role-playing games, there are no magic points in the D&D system that can be used for the use of spells. Magic-gifted characters have a limited number of spells available per day, depending on their character values and experience level. The magician must first memorize these sayings from his spellbook during a rest before he can cast them. A distinction is made between magician and priest spells. Magicians acquire new spells by copying selected scrolls into their spellbook. Priests receive their sayings as divine inspiration, depending on their protective deity. They have no control over the range of spells available to them. Alternatively, both classes can also use uniquely applicable scrolls or magic triggering objects.
The mage class includes spellcasters, mage specialists, warlocks, and bards. Besides the cleric, users of divine magic are also druids, rangers and paladins. Magic spells are divided into a total of nine degrees of magic with increasing power, priest spells only into seven degrees.
development
| 1998 |
Baldur's Gate |
|
| 1999 |
Baldur's Gate: Legends of the Sword Coast Planescape: Torment |
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| 2000 |
Icewind Dale Baldur’s Gate II: Shadow of Amn |
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| 2001 |
Icewind Dale: Heart of Winter Baldur’s Gate II: Throne of Bhaal Baldur’s Gate: Dark Alliance |
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| 2002 |
Icewind Dale II |
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| 2003 |
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| 2004 |
Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance 2 |
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| ~ | ||
| 2012 |
Baldur's Gate: Enhanced Edition |
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| 2013 |
Baldur's Gate II: Enhanced Edition |
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| 2014 |
Icewind Dale: Enhanced Edition |
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| 2015 |
|
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| 2016 |
Baldur's Gate: Siege of Dragonspear |
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| 2017 |
Planescape: Torment: Enhanced Edition |
Icewind Dale development was led by producer Chris Parker and Darren Monaghan. Unlike in previous games, there were no management positions for the various areas of responsibility. For the first six months, only a small team worked on the title, waiting for a transfer from the team behind Planescape: Torment , whose completion had been delayed.
The game is based on the second set of rules by Dungeons & Dragons ( Advanced Dungeons & Dragons ) and, like Baldur's Gate and Planescape: Torment, uses the Infinity engine from the Canadian development studio BioWare . The location was chosen because of the great popularity of the Icewind-Dale book trilogy by US author RA Salvatore (published in this country as part of the Forgotten Realms: The Forgotten Worlds series ), which at the same time contrasts well with the location of the Baldur's Gate series depicted. This region was not yet worked out in detail by the rules and therefore offered the developers more freedom. Jeremy Soule wrote the soundtrack . The focus of the game design was on varied dungeons , entertaining tactical combat and a neutral adventure in contrast to the personal approach of the other Infinity games.
In contrast to Baldur's Gate and Planescape: Torment , the contents of the chests and the composition of the loot of the killed opponents were generated randomly in Icewind Dale . Black Isle hoped to soften the linearity of the title compared to the sister projects and to increase the replayability.
reception
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Icewind Dale received mostly positive reviews. The review database Metacritic aggregates 29 reviews to a mean value of 87. IGN judged that Icewind Dale would "wash down the productivity (of the player) in the toilet", because despite the somewhat clichéd story it captivates and lets you completely forget time while playing. It is suitable for every RPG lover to bridge the waiting time for Baldur's Gate II .
Jeremy Soule's soundtrack was named Best Game Soundtrack of 2000 by Gamespot and IGN .
Extensions
Icewind Dale: Heart of Winter
| Icewind Dale: Heart of Winter | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Original title | Icewind Dale: Heart of the Winter | ||
| Studio | Black Isle Studios | ||
| Publisher | Interplay entertainment | ||
| Senior Developer |
Chris Avellone , Joshua E. Sawyer |
||
| Erstveröffent- lichung |
February 2001 | ||
| platform | Windows | ||
| Game engine | Infinity engine | ||
| genre | RPG | ||
| Game mode | Single player , multiplayer | ||
| control | Mouse , keyboard | ||
| medium | 1 CD | ||
| language | German | ||
| Current version | 1.42 (September 7, 2001) | ||
| Age rating |
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| information | Patch 1.42 included the mini-expansion The Challenges of the Master of Temptation . | ||
The official Heart of Winter expansion was released in February 2001, ten months after the main game was released and five months after Baldur's Gate II: Shadows of Amn . It supplements the game by around 20-30 additional hours of play for higher-level hero groups (from level 9).
action
The new content is integrated directly into the game and can be unlocked during the course of the game. In Kuldahar, the player and his group of heroes meet the barbarian shaman Hjollder, who comes from Uthgard. He traveled to Kuldahar because of a vision. He is convinced that the group of heroes is destined by fate to prevent the great danger of war between the Uthgard tribes and the Ten Cities. He asks her to accompany him to the little town of Einsamwald further north. The tensions there are fueled by the undead barbarian prince Wylfdene. He succeeded in uniting the otherwise divided tribes under his banner. On behalf of the shaman, the heroes are supposed to solve the dark mystery that surrounds his return from the realm of the dead.
The mission takes the group of heroes far from Kuldahar. The missions of the main game can no longer be pursued.
New content
The expansion includes new areas, 80 new items, 60 new spells and skills. The cap for experience points has been increased to eight million and a new difficulty mode called Heart of Wrath has been introduced as an additional challenge . For players who have already finished the main game, there is an import function with which an existing group of heroes can be put directly into the plot of the expansion.
technology
Heart of Winter was associated with a technology upgrade. The resolution, which was limited to 640 × 480 pixels in Icewind Dale, was increased to 800 × 600 pixels and the menu bars could now be completely hidden if desired. The game was brought to the same technical level as the recently published Baldur's Gate II .
reception
Herz des Winters received good, but slightly weaker ratings than Icewind Dale (Metacritic: 74 out of 100). Some reviewers have criticized the extent of the expansion as being too small.
The challenges of the master of temptation
The challenges of the master of seduction (ger .: Trials of the Luremaster ) is a free supplement to addon Heart of Winter . It was released on September 7, 2001 as part of patch 1.42 as a download. It was also released on CD in November 2001 in the compilation Icewind Dale - The Saga . Later collections often did not contain this extension.
action
The expansion mainly deals with the secrets of a castle that appears to have been abandoned a long time ago. During their stay in Lonely Forest, the setting for Heart of Winter , the group of heroes is asked for help in the local tavern by a halfling named Hobart Stummelzeh. Once the group is complete, they are transferred to a distant area where they have to face the eponymous traps and challenges of the master of temptation.
During the stay in the Anauroch, neither the missions of the expansion Heart of Winter nor those of the main game can be pursued.
development
The Master of Lure challenges came as Black Island's immediate response to criticism of the game length of the Heart of Winter add-on . Designer Stephen Bokkes was largely responsible for the additional content. In contrast to the main game and the first add-on Heart of the Winter , the focus of the game was more on puzzles. The 8-10 hour adventure includes 20 new areas and was integrated as an additional free expansion in patch 1.42 for Heart of Winter . It also appeared localized for the German market.
Icewind Dale: Enhanced Edition
| Icewind Dale: Enhanced Edition | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Studio | Overhaul Games | ||
| Publisher | Beamdog | ||
| Erstveröffent- lichung |
October 30, 2014 | ||
| platform | Android , iOS , Linux , macOS , Windows , Nintendo Switch , PS4 , Xbox | ||
| Game engine | Infinity engine | ||
| genre | Computer role playing game | ||
| Game mode | Single player , multiplayer | ||
| control | Keyboard , mouse , touch screen | ||
| medium | Download | ||
| language | Multilingual | ||
| Age rating |
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The Icewind Dale: Enhanced Edition is a revised and expanded version of Icewind Dale including the add-ons Heart of Winter and Trials of the Luremaster . The main feature besides the summary of the originally separate publications is the porting of the game to newer operating systems and devices with touch controls. This version was developed by the Canadian development studio Overhaul Games; the publication took place in October 2014 by the publisher and overhaul owner Beamdog. Since then, versions for iOS , Ubuntu , SteamOS and macOS have followed . A version for Android was released in August 2018. In December 2019, this title will also be available for PS4 , Xbox One and Nintendo Switch .
Development (Enhanced Edition)
After Beamdog, operator of the online sales platform of the same name for computer games, and its development studio under the direction of former BioWare employee Trent Oster in 2012 with Baldur's Gate: Enhanced Edition (BGEE) and in 2013 with Baldur's Gate II: Enhanced Edition (BG2EE) already two had revised and republished titles developed with the Infinity engine, a new edition of Icewind Dale was announced on August 30, 2014 at the PAX trade fair in Seattle .
Reception (Enhanced Edition)
The game received positive reviews. Gameplanet awarded 9 out of 10 points and praised the developers for having learned from mistakes in the two new editions of the Baldur's Gate series: “Third time's a charm”. A misstep, however, is story mode - a game variant in which the hero group rises twice as fast and is immortal.
continuation
After Black Isle Studios had to stop work on their RPG project Torn in 2001 due to ongoing technical problems, the aging Infinity engine was reactivated once more to produce a solid title with a short development cycle. After ten months of development, Icewind Dale II was released in late summer / winter 2002, which loosely follows the plot of the first part and, as the biggest innovation, included a change in the rules to the then current 3rd edition of Dungeons & Dragons .
Web links
- Icewind Dale at MobyGames (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b Jon "Buck" Birnbaum: Icewind Dale / Icewind Dale II Interview (Chris Jones) ( English ) In: Gamebanshee . March 16, 2007. Archived from the original on April 14, 2015. Retrieved November 6, 2011.
- ↑ a b c d Jon “Buck” Birnbaum: Icewind Dale / Icewind Dale II Interview (Joshua E. Sawyer) ( English ) In: Gamebanshee . March 16, 2007. Archived from the original on April 14, 2015. Retrieved November 6, 2011.
- ↑ a b Richard "Jonric" Aihoshi: Icewind Dale II Interview ( English ) In: RPGVault . IGN . February 4, 2002. Archived from the original on August 31, 2002. Retrieved November 6, 2012.
- ↑ a b IGN.com: Icewind Dale ( Memento from January 2, 2006 in the Internet Archive )
- ↑ a b Metacritic.com: Icewind Dale. Retrieved July 1, 2020 .
- ↑ Gamespot editors: Best and Worse of 2000 ( English ) In: GameSpot . CNET . December 2000. Archived from the original on June 10, 2001. Retrieved September 10, 2011.
- ↑ IGN editorial team: Best of 2000 Awards ( English ) In: IGN . IGN . January 26, 2001. Retrieved September 10, 2011.
- ^ Metacritic.com , PC Average Rating, accessed September 10, 2011.
- ↑ Phillip Frick: Test: Icewind Dale - Heart of Winter . In: Spieletipps.de . Retrieved February 19, 2011.
- ↑ Download description, Icewind Dale: Heart of Winter - Trails of the Luremaster. In: 4players.de. Retrieved April 16, 2018 .
- ↑ Katja: Heart of Winter: Free Expansion . In: 4Players . freenet AG . Retrieved February 19, 2011.
- ↑ Michel Bonke: ICEWIND DALE: ENHANCED EDITION. In: PC Games . October 22, 2014, accessed October 30, 2014 .
- ↑ Chris Brown: Icewind Dale: Enhanced Edition review. In: Gameplanet.com.au. October 30, 2014, accessed October 30, 2014 .