Hip Squared Season 2 Episode 12

BALDUR’S GATE

In this episode of Hip Squared, we enter two realms of magic and adventure. First, John talks about Baldur’s Gate, a series of PC role-playing games released in the late 90’s and early 2000’s by Black Isle Studios. These games revolutionized Dungeons & Dragons by letting players pause and issue commands to all their characters, allowing real-time gameplay instead of turn-based combat. Gorgeous hand-painted isometric graphics, music, sound and voice-acting lent the game rich detail and charm. This makes Baldur’s Gate John’s favorite computer role-playing game ever.

Then Troy tells us about Planescape: Torment, another Black Isle Studio D&D computer game developed with the same engine that gave Baldur’s Gate its distinctive gameplay and visual style. Instead of a traditional fantasy setting, this game takes place in a dark underworld populated by the dead and other entities. The player takes the role of the Nameless One, a zombie with no memories of his former life. Alongside his companion Mort, a floating, wise-cracking skull, they must solve the mystery of their own existence. With metaphysical philosophy and dark humor woven throughout, this game is a distinct volume in the C-RPG canon.

Produced by Maplex Monk.

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Toodles…