Classic RPGs - Diablo 2 vs Baldur's Gate 2

[Bellvedere]

So both these classic RPGs came out the same year. I played Baldur's Gate 2 (didn't play the first one until much later) and loved it. I found the story compelling, the characters interesting and the D&D gameplay challenging.

When talking to a friend about it (at the time) they recommended I play Diablo 2 aswell. And I thought it was pretty boring in comparison. Admittedly I didn't get that far into it at the time, but recently I've tried playing it again with a much more open mind (not trying to compare it BG and find faults) and still wasn't that impressed (though I guess it is almost 10 years old now and I have no nostalgic memories to keep me entertained).

So my question is, what did you think about these games? Like one more than the other? Like both? Like neither?

 

[The Madman]

The two are completely different, you know, aside from the isometric view angle and the 2D art.

But if I had to choose Baldur's Gate 2 no question. The story is superior, the characters interesting, the visuals cleaner, the artwork better, the gameplay more tactical and intelligent, the mod community more active, and the replayability massive.

Diablo 2 has better multiplayer and cinematics, but I'm not a terribly huge fan of either of those so really it's a case of BG: 6 Diablo: 0.

Knockout! Fatality! Finish Him!

After I've wiped my hard drive, first game I install is Baldur's Gate 2. There has never been a time since I bought that masterpiece it has not been first among my games. I've replayed it more than a dozen times now and every time founds something new and interesting to explore. Plus, as I mentioned, the mod community for BG is surprisingly vast and still active to this day.

Is my love getting across here, or do I need to go into creepy metaphor territory?

 

[Eclectic Dreck]

I liked both games immensely and it would be a disservice to both if I ranked them different. Baldur's Gate is a game that I well and truly played primarily because of the story and characters. While the gameplay itself had amazing depth, the actual mechanics I used took a back seat to continuing the saga (and at more than one hundred hours, the saga was long indeed). Diablo 2's gameplay was often far more exciting from moment to moment, and some magic combination of slaughtering legiosn of demons and their undead allies and the fact that another potential milestone was always just around the corner had me enthralled for god knows how many hours. Though I dabbled in all of the classes (i.e. played through on normal) I only really gave a sincere effort in the form of my Assassin, which I had to reroll at least a half dozen times before I figured out what worked in the long run and what didn't. From the teloport kick-in-the-junk to booby trapping bodies, there was nothing about the assassin class that wasn't amazing.

The character is, without a doubt the best geared character I've ever had in any online game to date. I had the full Natalia's Odium set (the boots and helm were easy, the armor was tough to get and the claw was damn near impossible), and all the good high level unique items you might want (bartuc's claw with a rune word, string of ears and so forth). I even went through the immense effort to add sockets to every item I could, furthering the already awesome power of the character. Then I joined the Army, and while in training the account lapsed and I lost the character. Then I was deployed, and WoW launched and no one ever played the game again. I installed the game some months back to see how it was (and it's still a blast) but with almost no one playing there is little reason to take that game online - there's no way I could have gotten my gear to the level it was at without the trade channel.

 

[rockingnic]

I'm split between both. But I can tell you I'm looking forward to Diablo 3.

 

[ManBarrel]

BG II

 

[Skeleon]

The thing is that Diablo 2 is not really an RPG...
It's an Action-RPG.
I like them for their addictive nature, but I don't consider them actual RPGs, they lack immersion, character development (no, I'm not talking stats and skills) and story.
Diablo 1 was much better in that respect, at least concerning immersion and story.
However, gameplay-wise Diablo 2 was superior to Diablo 1 in almost every way.
There was no real character development in either one of them.

 

[Alex_P]

Back in their day, I liked BG2 far more than Diablo 2, but both of them have elements that keep me from returning.

I loved BG2, but its absolutely horrible AD&D-derived game rules make replays unsatisfying. Save vs. death? Not in two-thousand-freakin'-nine.

Diablo 2 had pretty good moment-to-moment gameplay but it's just a bit too long and the item-grinding is quite tedious (particularly ridiculous when you try to make runewords or stuff crap into the Horadric Cube).

-- Alex

 

[Dominar]

I can't really say much. I never played BG2 but I have seen it and it has A LOT of dics..I liked Diablo 2 but like you say it gets very boring and repeatative. Hopefuly the Diablo 3 (if it ever see's the light of a rlease date) Will bring somehting new to teh series

 

[Valiance]

Baldur's Gate 2 is probably the best RPG I ever played, even better than Fallout 2.

Diablo II, honestly, I still play on and off. It's more of a multi-player MMO-lite type of game. Offline, it's entertaining for pretty much 1 playthrough, but the amount of grinding/time sunk into it is very unrewarding compared to, say, BG.

It's a less immersive game - it's an action RPG, while BG is more of a party-based Tactical RPG.

Totally different games, but I prefer BG2 for single player, and D2 for online multiplayer.

 

[Woem]

The thing is that Diablo 2 is not really an RPG...
It's an Action-RPG.
I like them for their addictive nature, but I don't consider them actual RPGs, they lack immersion, character development (no, I'm not talking stats and skills) and story.
Diablo 1 was much better in that respect, at least concerning immersion and story.
However, gameplay-wise Diablo 2 was superior to Diablo 1 in almost every way.
There was no real character development in either one of them.

I completely agree. Much in the same way that I consider the Final Fantasy series to be more of adventure-RPGs (like a Zelda with more stats) I consider the Diablo series to be action-RPGs.

 

[Jandau]

The difference between the two games is such that it's arguably a mistake to put them under the same genre. Diablo is an hybrid of action games and RPGs, hence the common classification Action RPG. Baldur's Gate 2 is a full blown, epic scale, old school RPG.

Baldur's Gate 2 is a better game. Better writing and story, better graphics, better characters, more variety, etc. The only thing D2 has superior is multiplayer (and D2 multiplayer was a cesspool of the net, probably still is).

However, D2 isn't a bad game. While BG2 is better, D2 has its own merits. The trick is not to go in with the wrong expectations. It's an action game, not an RPG. The RPG parts are there to spice up the action and add some depth. It's a game about whacking stuff to death, and as such it is a credit to its kind. To date there aren't many (if any) Action RPG games that surpassed D2. It should be judged by its own merits and not dismissed because of misplaced expectations.

 

[cmichaelcooper]

Definitely BG2 for me. It is so well written and infinitely replayable. Plus the modding community is still extremely active. My favorite setup is the Baldur's Gate Trilogy mod which combines BG1 and 2 into one game under the BG2 interface. Add in a few of the extra content mods and you almost have a completely new game.

 

[Credge]

It depends. I've played D2 much, much more. I've had more fun with it. I won't play it anymore as it hasn't aged well at all.

BG2 (and 1, actually) have aged very, very well and are still fun to play. I'll make a character (or a whole group) and send them through some of the content.

So, it's kind of a lopsided question. D2 is more fun, but didn't age as well as BG2 has so BG2 will be viewed as the winner.

 

[Sir Reginald Bathwater]

I think they were both great. You can dip into D2 and just do boss runs, or 'one more dungeon' to get that unique item and find it, hours later (or not), without noticing the time fly by. But BG2 is just incredible.
I would prefer a BG3 to Diablo3 any day

 

[tarquin biscuitbarrel]

they arent even the same genre.

diablo is a multiplayer 'action' rpg
baldurs gate is a single player (ok so there was mp but it was crap) 'strategy' RPG

 

[Hyrulian Hero]

First off, between the two of them, I'd have to say... Darkstone. Same dungeon crawler-style game, but it comes with a mission/map/item editor/creator so that after you beat the main story line, you can go and make your own quests, maps, towns, overworlds and pretty much just recreate the entire game to your liking and then try your hand at your own cutom made game.

Seriously, if you haven't tried Darkstone, try it! You can get it cheaper than either of the aforementioned games and it's a lot better. You can even drop your custom dungeons in to the normal campain game and make the game as long as you want by adding user-created content.

Also, I don't think that dungeon crawler games are really RPG's. And those ones aren't really classic either... first off, if you wanted a "classic" game, you would have asked Diable or Baldur's Gate, not the sequels. And if you wanted a classic RPG, then you would have to go for something more like Dragon Warrior, Final Fantasy, Zelda 2, Shadowgate, those kinds of things... Those are classics.

 

[Kellerb]

bauldurs gate 2. no question.

 

[Anachronism]

Baldur's Gate II.

Diablo is a dungeon crawler clickfest/shopping simulator. It's still a very good game in its own right, but if you try to compare it with a proper RPG it hasn't got a hope in hell. Baldur's Gate II has a terrific story, intelligent, tactical combat, and genuinely compelling characters. The writing was much better, and it was a game you could truly lose yourself in.

Diablo 2 was good for quick burst, but you're going to get repetitive stress disorder in your clicking finger if you try and play it for too long. BGII was a massive game that you could spend hours at a time in, and yet never get bored. It's timeless.

I loved BG2, but its absolutely horrible AD&D-derived game rules make replays unsatisfying. Save vs. death? Not in two-thousand-freakin'-nine.

Am I the only one who actually likes the AD&D rules? I know they're extremely complicated, and even counterintuitive in some ways, but I still think they work very well in the game. Sure, they take quite a while to get used to, but once I got them all figured out I barely noticed all the complicated stuff.

 

[ravensshade]

The two are completely
Is my love getting across here, or do I need to go into creepy metaphor territory?

go into creepy metaphor territory nothing wrong ever comes from that

also bg2 even though (to my embarrasement) i never found the exist of the first area.. maybe i should try again now that i'm older&wiser.
Never played diablo2 but i don't know don't think i'd like it