I always preferred Champions to this game. Just felt bigger and more epic, and I really enjoyed the EverQuest setting as a slight break from the Forgotten Realms. The Dark Alliance games were great, but I feel like the Snowblind formula was perfected when the devs went on to Champions of Norrath.
@@hauntedhotdog ya, I would have to agree. I would say I spent the most hours in RTA than any of the other 3. Really hoping they eventually re-release these as well.
@@WoddahMaloneGaming God that’d be amazing, RTA was by far the favorite in our household growing up out of these 4. It was so nice to play the Dark alliance games again with my brother just like old times.
Brilliant review. I played the hell out of this game back in 2004 on the Xbox and truly believe it's a substantial improvement over the original Dark Alliance. Being able to modify your weapons and gear being one of them.
Wow, I really appreciate that! I agree, I played this so much with my little brother when I was little, it's been awesome to go back and play them as an adult.
I remember original copies of the game for PS2, in good quality, selling for upwards of $180-$200 not all that long ago... This game and Gauntlet: Dark Legacy were literally my childhood.
That's insane to think I've had 4 copies of this game and today how much they'd all be worth haha. Oh ya I forgot all about gauntlet! May need to play that one again.
@@WoddahMaloneGaming Imho £30 (36USD) is a ridiculous amount to ask for a 20 year old title with extra resolutions. Especially when you can get stuff like the Yakuza Kiwami Remakes for less, 3-5 remastered for the same price as one DA game on steam, or the Crash Trilogy/Spyro Trilogy Remakes for the same price. I'm just going to wait and hopefully they end up on Key sites for less.
@@Spr1ggan87 no you make a very good point. I was so shocked they actually priced it at that much. I guess I was just factoring in maybe needing to source the original hardware plus the game I guess is the only way this is a better deal.
Great video! just a point, in this second game it's always been impossible to remove the "base" armour, but in the first it was possible to walk around in underpants, so yeah, probabily a decision they made way back when they released the game for ps2. Funfact: If you press the button continuously to equip and remove the chestplate piece you can see them in underpants. They removed it for the kids at the time for sure.
Hah, that is an interesting piece of knowledge, thanks for that. Ya the undressing part was just a carryover joke from the previous video, my jokes are so bad sometimes.
I played BGDA II on original Xbox when it was released, including replaying in Extreme mode to get Artemis (using Drizzt). Then five years later I played it all over again. That console is gone, but now I'm replaying it on Xbox Series X and loving it ! Thanks for the great review.
Great review. I regretted selling this game years ago, since I had played it so much at that point I thought I would never want to play it again. Fast forward a decade, got the itch, and was dismayed to see that most PS2 copies were going for like 150, so I was kind of forced into the emulator route in 2018. I'm super excited to see that this is on steam, I would recommend this over dealing with the issues of an emulator.
Ya I think it depends greatly. Some of these ran really horrid for me on emulator while the latest champions game is super smooth. I'd say for most people you're right, the steam version will be their best bet. Especially people like us who have a soft spot for the game already. Haha
It's a good game I bought and completed it using the barbarian over the weekend, it was pretty damn easy on hard mode though. Maybe the barbarian is OP but I was dual wielding greatswords hitting 250+ pretty much every hit towards the end. Completely agree about the dark levels, pretty much all of the quest areas are in dungeons/houses which don't feel as open as the first. I prefer the story/areas you go to far more in the first as each act felt very distinctive. Overall a good game though.
Ya I think the barbarian is the best damage output class. Ah good, I was hoping I wasn't the only one thinking it was so much darker and dull than the first.
great until you hit extreme mode where the ability to block and avoid damage becomes absolutely critical by act 2 end and act 3 start. and forget trying to beat the game as monk on extreme; I had to cheat the barbarian through the onyx golems because they hit SO HARD!
I was never able to get my hands on the second game, the first one was one of my favourite games to play when i was a kid, but on steam is like 38CAD which is much cheaper than the ps2 version since, i cant really find it, but also the ones i do find are like 150 dollars...at least. But really love it, im having a blast with all the nostalgia
That's so good to hear. Ya I was the same, I was going to play it regardless hah. I just know some people may not like this style of game so wanted to be cautious.
Great video bud. These games are so nostalgic, definitely struggling to hold off on buying them... Need to complete both of them with my Dad like I did back in 2004/5!
As far as difficulty the fist game goes the boss battles can be cheesed in some way and you can run away from most conflicts the second game is way easier in the sense that you don't have to worry about rationing of arrows and you got the enchanting system
Very nice review. I actually love the port. Felt Nostalgic being the Barb and steamrolling everyone (The Mind Flayer gave me a road block but I ended up kicking her ass XD!!)
And there it is! Skipped the story part for now since I'm playing through the game myself but it's another great video! I've been slowly working through it and I'm about 4/5 hours in. Glad to hear you also enjoyed it.
@@WoddahMaloneGaming picked the barbarian because I had no idea what to expect from the others. After I'm done I'm definitely going for a 2nd run with a different class tho!
Nice review. My biggest issue with this re-release is the price tag. It's not that 30 dollars for a game is inherently steep, but rather that the experience Dark Alliance 2 provides in a post D3/Torchlight/Path of Exile/Grim Dawn world just feels overly simple, shallow, and dated. The ARPG field is crowded, and in my opinion DA 1&2 just don't measure up in light of the advances the genre has made over the last decade in particular. I would maybe take a nice little nostalgia trip for 10 bucks, but a 30 dollar asking price just makes me wonder what the publishers are smoking.
Hey I really appreciate it. Also have to agree with you there. I think they are banking on nostalgia for this sell mainly because they didnt add anything in for us and as you stated, theres no way this compares to the games of recent.
I think you should be grateful its only $30 I think it was a bitch to get ahold of a $100 dollar copy of Dark Alliance II for the PS2 and a emulated version runs like asshole at worse fidelity than this remaster is even able to provide. $30 is perfect
I’m a huge fan of Baulder’s Gate Dark Alliance II. This is a super fair review and I really enjoyed it! (My family were huge fans of this game, we eventually moved to Champions of Norrath after finishing this series.)
I played this game so much on the couch in co-op with my childhood best friend. Some of my fondest gaming memories by far. Just picked it up on Switch.
This game was a source of pure joy for me when I was sick at home on school days, and could play for hours while my parents were at work EDIT: okay my parents aren't on youtube, I don't know why I lied. I pretended to be sick so I could play this game
Great review and nice video over all. Loved the original, looking to play through these co-op with my girlfriend. Doing the first one right now and it's a nightmare lol.
@@WoddahMaloneGaming She wanted to be the archer so I'm doing the sorceress. Lots of "don't stand still while 20 skeletons are caving your skull in!" but we're having a lot of fun
@@WoddahMaloneGaming Hell yeah! I have a few in recognition of my favorite video game series. Dragon Quest, Final Fantasy, Legend of Zelda, Legend of Heroes, and Metroid. I'm really impressed with the size of their collection. It seems like there's thousands of possible prints and the quality of the art on some of them is absolutely spectacular. It's nice to be able to support independent artists too since they get a % if their picture sells.
@@WoddahMaloneGaming understandable! I miss clearing populated zones with exploding potions, or getting my fire resistance so high I could walk through the larval fields. Good times.
I dont understand all the people saying the game is crazy hard/to hard ect, me and my buddie flew through hard mode with a cleric and dark elf pretty easily, sort of suprised by how easy the game was. Maybe it's harder solo, but cant really picture it beeing THAT much harder solo tbh. Got the Drizzt unlock and started an extreme playthrough now though, maybe that will prove more challenging. 🤷♂
I think if you are used to building characters and just DnD style growth in general then it makes sense and the game can be a much easier experience. Thats my guess anyways. Cleric and Dark Elf seems like such a fun combo!
I played the shit out of the first one, and was so excited for part 2. Until I learned they weren't releasing it on GC. I was in my early 20's and lived alone, hence, no money to buy a console that I could play it on. I'm kinda stoked to finally be able to play it. Great review, dude.
Thanks I really appreciate that. I remember not knowing if and when they would ever release part 2, I think I randomly found a used copy years later at my local game store and couldn't believe it. Haha
I had this game on PS2, had every characters at level 40 with all feats Now I have it on the switch. Going for Every Weapons (Apart from Club) and every Piece of Armour at the Flawless quality. Along with all characters at level 40 and all Feats. :) PS there is no Flawless Club :(
Some classes have skills to let you get past blocking. Power Attack on the Barbarian for example goes through blocks. The Cleric later on gets Paladin abilities and can use Smite to do the same. Until then she can cast Flame Pillar. The Wizard can use nonprojectile spells like Enervate which is honestly his best spell until you do his background quest to get Shadow Magic. The monk should just be stunning stuff that they never get a chance to do anything. The Rogue has explosive shot and I believe ransack goes through blacks too? Drizzt has repulsion. I don't remember what Artemis has though.
@@shinon748 ya they mainly have spells and abilities to help them in many situations. I actually didnt think blocking was as annoying in this as it was in Champions series but I can see people getting frustrated if they want to feel super OP with lack luster builds. You must be a DnD OG.
Guess 10k views is to be expected for a niche game that noone knows about unless they both have the nostalgia for it AND somehow stumbled across the handful of tweets mentioning the games comeback with 0 marketing for it. I just want to say this is a genuine top 1% youtuber quality video you made. I am absolutely serious. This is on par with the quality you are used too from creators with hundreds of thousands of views. So absolutely WELL DONE. Just one thing, maybe put spoiler warnings when you mention what characters to AT THE END OF THE GAME. Even if its a corny, silly story.
Wow thank you so much I really appreciate it. Hopefully can produce some videos that people enjoy and I really appreciate the feedback. I think that's a very good point about the spoilers, I didn't think the story was that important but the video wasn't targeted to me. Thank you for that it means alot.
Glad I hung on to my PS2 copy. As much as I loved the first game, the broader selection of characters and the workshop system really elevated 2 for me. Admittedly, if it's pretty tempting to just pick Borador and just storm through the thing!
I own both games on ps2 and xbox; I play it primarily on xbox from now because the game loads much faster though there's been minor adjustments that nerf skills. I.E: divine strength in ps2 gives +15 strength but xbox gives +12 strength; the +7 to hit and damage was EXTREMELY good and that one point loss is very noticeable!
I have all the Snowblind engine games: Baldurs Gate Dark Alliance 1,2, Champions and Return to arms, Bards Tale , Justice League Heroes and Fallout Brotherhood of Steel. I really hope they remake Champions of Norrath and Return to arms. And also , when does this game release on Playstation? Still not on PsStore😵
You can find Bards Tale easily cause it has been remastered. I started playing Bards Tale again few days ago. In my opinion it has the best companion system of the Snowblind engine games. And its just a fun game , lots of humour.
ive had both for pc a while, even played the ports upon release. never at once found it difficult, it was fun, yes not as many spells as the first,, but weapon and armor upgrades were awesome. ty for the review, sub earned, did u do a walkthrough on your channel, id like to watch it. ty
Yo thank you so much!! What class did you play as by the way? No unfortunately I just played this in my spare time. Over on twitch I do stream tons of rpgs though 3 days a week. Soon I will start streaming to UA-cam so there will be more vods and playthroughs to watch.
This game is way easier than the first. I re-played the first game when it was released a few months ago and I died a ton on Hard mode. Like, I had to kite around random enemies because they’d 3-shot me. In this one, I’m in Chapter 3 and I’ve died to enemies maybe twice. And now that I’ve unlocked Ysuran’s Shadow Magic, I’m nigh unstoppable.
I still to this day like the first one more. The music and the story. The necro is a letdown in the 2nd game... I like them both don't get me wrong but 1 is the one I remember the most. Champions is by far the better out of all these games. I wish it would come to pc.
You hit my complaint with the last act of the game on the nose! Too short & feels rushed. I've never paid any attention to the use of color in the levels in these specific games. Champions of Norrath & Return to Arms, Baldur's Gate Dark Alliance 1& 2 - I always preferred the prior for whatever reason. Thinking about it, it's probably due to the higher fantasy theme paired with the wonderful color palette. Awesome review! Thank you!
There is only one question that needs to be asked to determine if this is worth it; does it support online co-op? The last one didn't, and thus wasn't worth a second look. These games were DESIGNED for a co-op experience, it's where the vast majority of the fun comes from, and in this day and age online is a must for that. If they couldn't be bothered to add online, and kept it local only (who the heck even owns two controllers anymore?) it's basically trash.
That's probably my biggest gripe with this game and I'm so angry I didn't mention it in my review. There is no online coop, just local. Definitely not worth the price I'd say. I literally only bought the 2 games for the nostalgia and to do reviews.
Coldfire. The ultimate newbie enchantment (newbie because it works for all). I like the warlord enchantment. One of the most powerful (and coolest in appearance- sorry aquamarine) but shite against undead..... *cough cough*..... maybe not one of the best in the late game
Nah I don't find that weird at all. It's certainly not for everyone and if the gameplay isn't overwhelmingly amazing to you then there are tons of flaws in the game for sure. I definitely can understand.
Haha, ya I think having more abilities and being able to enchant definitely gives more options to make it through otherwise tough areas. I was surprised by the amount of people complaining about the difficulty as well.
If i have a critique for this game, it is that it doesent give info jewelry wich should be a thing in 2022. It it allmost seems like there is no point in using jewelry as it doesent give any info on what it gives. Armor and weapons also should be given extra info on stats it gives besides just the atk or defense value, no? Another critique is that you should be able to play a new game +. So you could start from scratch and play out the whole game again slightly more difficult, but you get access to better stuff. As this stuff is playing right now it feels held back and limited to the full potential it truly could have in 2022. In 2004 this was the best game ever on ps2. In 2022 i give it a 5 out of 10
Ya very fair critiques. Some of the things it lacked seemed so easy to fix and very obvious as well which would have just made the experience so much better!
Baldur's Gate dark Alliance 2 oh my goodness I am saying this before I watch the video it is one of the best games in the world I don't care I miss it and I miss the whole series can't wait to get it myself again
I don't like the second because the melee attacks animation was lazy just one hit and then the attack repeated in the first baldur gate dark alliance the melee was much better smooth and not boring
The attack combinations are locked behind the weapon feats, some characters don't have these feats though, like the necromancer, or unlock them after they unlock their secondary class like the cleric when she gets paladin.
it is a fallout diablo like game from the same era like champions of norrath it I think it uses even the same engine then baldurs gate dark alliance 2, because it is from the same devs.
Not as good as Diablo II Remaster. Not only does DII R look better, but plays better too both as a single and multiplayer game - and can get it for cheaper too.
@@WoddahMaloneGaming I played the remaster on XBSX. The graphics, lighting, effects and FPS have all improved yet keeps that retro atmosphere. I suppose it depends if you liked the original and want an update in visuals and other areas but keeps close to the original then yes.
For me can’t really recommend the game. Used to play the original game a lot but this PC version suffers from bugs like games not saving and quests not completing after you’ve done them.
See I probably should have spent far more time in the steam version. On first glance it seemed the exact same. That's so annoying, im sorry to hear they pretty much did the same as the first game.
But the fun part, is if you beat it on the hardest difficulties, you get SECRET CHARACTER UNLOCKS (( Side note, Ps2 Emulators cannot keep up with this game, pretty unstable. ))
Haha, ya I played through it with Artemis as well. I played it with pcsx2 to test out and it ran pretty well for the most part. I do have a high end cpu though so maybe that's it.
@@WoddahMaloneGaming drizzt do'urden's weapons are lore accurate for their names Twinkle and Icingdeath, Artemis seemed like... an afterthought in the game, but I still played with both of them, lots of fun, best way to beat those difficulties is cheese mode with a necromancer.
@@WoddahMaloneGaming Well he is Drizzt's Arch Nemesis in the lore, so sufficient to say the voice lines and such are pretty lore accurate, but he seems monstrously underwhelming in the game in comparison to the Drow mad lad.
Just an input, if you're gonna do video game review, it would be better there's more clip of the said video game more than your face. It's not a podcast.
I appreciate the feedback, I try to make it more entertaining then just a bland review since there's plenty of those out there. I don't enjoy making those kinds of reviews but I have tried them before.
well i love play Femel Charakter and even as a kid (im 21 now) i did that so if u equip and unequipped realy fast u can see there bra :3 (well i will not pay 30€ for that game... but champions of norrath will get me 4sure! xD) well what i wanna say... im already at 60h on champions of norrath "2" (like for PCX2 :3) but im still soooooooooooooo hyped and hope there will be a multiplayer.
The Dark Alliance games were a favorite of me and my brothers. Also a great game was the Everquest games, Champions of Norrath. Good times.
Same! I am currently playing champions of norrath now! Shhh, don't tell anyone.
I always preferred Champions to this game. Just felt bigger and more epic, and I really enjoyed the EverQuest setting as a slight break from the Forgotten Realms. The Dark Alliance games were great, but I feel like the Snowblind formula was perfected when the devs went on to Champions of Norrath.
@@hauntedhotdog ya, I would have to agree. I would say I spent the most hours in RTA than any of the other 3. Really hoping they eventually re-release these as well.
@@WoddahMaloneGaming God that’d be amazing, RTA was by far the favorite in our household growing up out of these 4. It was so nice to play the Dark alliance games again with my brother just like old times.
@@Zorph27 we just need to put it out into the universe and it HAS to happen. Haha
Brilliant review. I played the hell out of this game back in 2004 on the Xbox and truly believe it's a substantial improvement over the original Dark Alliance. Being able to modify your weapons and gear being one of them.
Wow, I really appreciate that! I agree, I played this so much with my little brother when I was little, it's been awesome to go back and play them as an adult.
I remember original copies of the game for PS2, in good quality, selling for upwards of $180-$200 not all that long ago... This game and Gauntlet: Dark Legacy were literally my childhood.
That's insane to think I've had 4 copies of this game and today how much they'd all be worth haha. Oh ya I forgot all about gauntlet! May need to play that one again.
That's for new copies, you can get good condition used copies on ebay for £12-20.
@@Spr1ggan87 ah ok, well that's not too bad, but then you might as well buy the steam version I guess huh?
@@WoddahMaloneGaming Imho £30 (36USD) is a ridiculous amount to ask for a 20 year old title with extra resolutions. Especially when you can get stuff like the Yakuza Kiwami Remakes for less, 3-5 remastered for the same price as one DA game on steam, or the Crash Trilogy/Spyro Trilogy Remakes for the same price.
I'm just going to wait and hopefully they end up on Key sites for less.
@@Spr1ggan87 no you make a very good point. I was so shocked they actually priced it at that much. I guess I was just factoring in maybe needing to source the original hardware plus the game I guess is the only way this is a better deal.
Great video! just a point, in this second game it's always been impossible to remove the "base" armour, but in the first it was possible to walk around in underpants, so yeah, probabily a decision they made way back when they released the game for ps2. Funfact: If you press the button continuously to equip and remove the chestplate piece you can see them in underpants. They removed it for the kids at the time for sure.
Hah, that is an interesting piece of knowledge, thanks for that. Ya the undressing part was just a carryover joke from the previous video, my jokes are so bad sometimes.
@@WoddahMaloneGaming 🤣🤣
This was such a good review! I liked it a lot. Thanks man!
Thank you man I really appreciate that!
I played BGDA II on original Xbox when it was released, including replaying in Extreme mode to get Artemis (using Drizzt). Then five years later I played it all over again. That console is gone, but now I'm replaying it on Xbox Series X and loving it ! Thanks for the great review.
So glad you're enjoying the game again, will always be a classic! Thanks for the kind words as well!
Great review. I regretted selling this game years ago, since I had played it so much at that point I thought I would never want to play it again. Fast forward a decade, got the itch, and was dismayed to see that most PS2 copies were going for like 150, so I was kind of forced into the emulator route in 2018. I'm super excited to see that this is on steam, I would recommend this over dealing with the issues of an emulator.
Ya I think it depends greatly. Some of these ran really horrid for me on emulator while the latest champions game is super smooth. I'd say for most people you're right, the steam version will be their best bet. Especially people like us who have a soft spot for the game already. Haha
It's a good game I bought and completed it using the barbarian over the weekend, it was pretty damn easy on hard mode though. Maybe the barbarian is OP but I was dual wielding greatswords hitting 250+ pretty much every hit towards the end.
Completely agree about the dark levels, pretty much all of the quest areas are in dungeons/houses which don't feel as open as the first. I prefer the story/areas you go to far more in the first as each act felt very distinctive.
Overall a good game though.
Ya I think the barbarian is the best damage output class.
Ah good, I was hoping I wasn't the only one thinking it was so much darker and dull than the first.
Yeah barb is OP, i enjoyed it just spaming barbarian rage and one shotting stuff haha it was great
@@lovecheba7668 sometimes that's all we want to do though. Haha
great until you hit extreme mode where the ability to block and avoid damage becomes absolutely critical by act 2 end and act 3 start.
and forget trying to beat the game as monk on extreme; I had to cheat the barbarian through the onyx golems because they hit SO HARD!
@@thevashfan12392 ya these games always get tough right towards the end if you haven't been utilizing blocking and dodging effectively.
I was never able to get my hands on the second game, the first one was one of my favourite games to play when i was a kid, but on steam is like 38CAD which is much cheaper than the ps2 version since, i cant really find it, but also the ones i do find are like 150 dollars...at least. But really love it, im having a blast with all the nostalgia
That's so good to hear. Ya I was the same, I was going to play it regardless hah. I just know some people may not like this style of game so wanted to be cautious.
Great video bud. These games are so nostalgic, definitely struggling to hold off on buying them... Need to complete both of them with my Dad like I did back in 2004/5!
Yo I really appreciate it. Same, this game represents so many hours I got to spend with my little brother so I will always be thankful for that.
As far as difficulty the fist game goes the boss battles can be cheesed in some way and you can run away from most conflicts the second game is way easier in the sense that you don't have to worry about rationing of arrows and you got the enchanting system
I agree with the enchantment part for sure. Once you start using that its a huge boost to your characters!
Good review man, I've subscribed 👍
Wow, that's unreal. Thank you so much!!
Very nice review. I actually love the port. Felt Nostalgic being the Barb and steamrolling everyone (The Mind Flayer gave me a road block but I ended up kicking her ass XD!!)
Thank you so much! My little bro always picked the barbarian and it was wild watching his damage just going through the roof.
@@WoddahMaloneGaming You are very welcome mate :D! Have another sub :D
Wow! Far too kind!!
@@WoddahMaloneGaming Well, I reckon you do great content so I intend to support it :D!!!!!
First time watching your video. Funny and informative. Well done bro.
That's awesome! Thank you so much for that.
A 1 second answer to this question: Yes
It was amazing then and it's great now.
This was a great review. Thank you so much.
No problem, thank you for watching!
Cool review man! Channel rocks!
Yo thank you so much, I really appreciate that!
The Mask AND Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance 2 review in one video? Love it.
You cant have one without the other. Just facts!!
And there it is! Skipped the story part for now since I'm playing through the game myself but it's another great video! I've been slowly working through it and I'm about 4/5 hours in. Glad to hear you also enjoyed it.
Yo!! Glad to hear you're enjoying it. What class did you end up choosing?
@@WoddahMaloneGaming picked the barbarian because I had no idea what to expect from the others. After I'm done I'm definitely going for a 2nd run with a different class tho!
@@PLSHSL my bro always went barbarian. Enjoy!
Nice review. My biggest issue with this re-release is the price tag. It's not that 30 dollars for a game is inherently steep, but rather that the experience Dark Alliance 2 provides in a post D3/Torchlight/Path of Exile/Grim Dawn world just feels overly simple, shallow, and dated. The ARPG field is crowded, and in my opinion DA 1&2 just don't measure up in light of the advances the genre has made over the last decade in particular. I would maybe take a nice little nostalgia trip for 10 bucks, but a 30 dollar asking price just makes me wonder what the publishers are smoking.
Hey I really appreciate it. Also have to agree with you there. I think they are banking on nostalgia for this sell mainly because they didnt add anything in for us and as you stated, theres no way this compares to the games of recent.
I think you should be grateful its only $30 I think it was a bitch to get ahold of a $100 dollar copy of Dark Alliance II for the PS2 and a emulated version runs like asshole at worse fidelity than this remaster is even able to provide. $30 is perfect
@@Mystical_Zeus ya thats fair enough, I think it depends on the person. So far it seems like it's split down the middle.
I’m a huge fan of Baulder’s Gate Dark Alliance II. This is a super fair review and I really enjoyed it! (My family were huge fans of this game, we eventually moved to Champions of Norrath after finishing this series.)
Aw thanks I really appreciate that. I try to be objective as possible and sometimes MT nostalgia goggles get in the way. Haha
such a fan that u spell the name wrong ? lol
This channel is so good! Fr
Yo I appreciate it so much!
I played this game so much on the couch in co-op with my childhood best friend. Some of my fondest gaming memories by far. Just picked it up on Switch.
Imo one of the most fun couch coop experiences I've ever enjoyed in gaming.
Can you play the game with key board and mouse or does the buttons not work unless you have a controller
Oh shoot!! I forgot to include that, yes you can play with keyboard and mouse!
This game was a source of pure joy for me when I was sick at home on school days, and could play for hours while my parents were at work
EDIT: okay my parents aren't on youtube, I don't know why I lied. I pretended to be sick so I could play this game
😂😂 I used to wait until my mom went to sleep, then would get up and play until like 5am. Like a good kid
Great review and nice video over all. Loved the original, looking to play through these co-op with my girlfriend. Doing the first one right now and it's a nightmare lol.
Haha, what characters did you both choose. Also thank you, I really appreciate that!
@@WoddahMaloneGaming She wanted to be the archer so I'm doing the sorceress. Lots of "don't stand still while 20 skeletons are caving your skull in!" but we're having a lot of fun
@@ilikecatsandstuff1 She chose the archer!? She has great taste!!
Are those Displates on the wall in the background?
Yes they are, I have 5 in total and just ordered 2 more!
@@WoddahMaloneGaming Hell yeah! I have a few in recognition of my favorite video game series. Dragon Quest, Final Fantasy, Legend of Zelda, Legend of Heroes, and Metroid. I'm really impressed with the size of their collection. It seems like there's thousands of possible prints and the quality of the art on some of them is absolutely spectacular. It's nice to be able to support independent artists too since they get a % if their picture sells.
@@acidwizard6528 thats so dope!! Ive also got a couple metroid ones and also a ninja turtles one. Now getting two more final fantasy ones.
I loved this game. Classic. Baldurs gate 1 and 2, as well as the Champions of Norrath games. I wish they had continued into 2022
Can you imagine how good the games would be by now!?
@@WoddahMaloneGaming unless they bodged and butchered, completely unrivaled and unparalleled by any rpg
@@HopeAngel777 ok you're making me sad, I need a new champions game now.
@@WoddahMaloneGaming understandable! I miss clearing populated zones with exploding potions, or getting my fire resistance so high I could walk through the larval fields. Good times.
@@HopeAngel777 i didnt even know you could do that!! You're teaching me so much!
I dont understand all the people saying the game is crazy hard/to hard ect, me and my buddie flew through hard mode with a cleric and dark elf pretty easily, sort of suprised by how easy the game was. Maybe it's harder solo, but cant really picture it beeing THAT much harder solo tbh. Got the Drizzt unlock and started an extreme playthrough now though, maybe that will prove more challenging. 🤷♂
I think if you are used to building characters and just DnD style growth in general then it makes sense and the game can be a much easier experience. Thats my guess anyways. Cleric and Dark Elf seems like such a fun combo!
You had the only healer that also buffs like crazy and the Monk, which is the 2nd best damage in the game. Yea it was easy, lol.
Got both games for the steam deck and I love them both
Steam deck is a game changer.
@@WoddahMaloneGaming brooo factsss
Just bought this and been playing for the first time coop with my wife
Hoping you enjoy it, was one of the most fond memories I have in gaming.
Damn, I just wanna know how you got the playstation button prompts to appear through Steam instead of Xbox...
Oh, not sure if you watched my first video just before this one but I recorded all my footage from the playstation.
I played the shit out of the first one, and was so excited for part 2. Until I learned they weren't releasing it on GC. I was in my early 20's and lived alone, hence, no money to buy a console that I could play it on. I'm kinda stoked to finally be able to play it. Great review, dude.
Thanks I really appreciate that. I remember not knowing if and when they would ever release part 2, I think I randomly found a used copy years later at my local game store and couldn't believe it. Haha
Love the editing lmaooooo
Haha, thank you. I have a blast making them.
@@WoddahMaloneGaming I can see!! You let your personality show & that’s a great quality! 💪🏼
Haha, well I appreciate it.
I had this game on PS2, had every characters at level 40 with all feats
Now I have it on the switch. Going for Every Weapons (Apart from Club) and every Piece of Armour at the Flawless quality. Along with all characters at level 40 and all Feats. :)
PS there is no Flawless Club :(
You've actually won at the game. Haha, im pretty impressed with the dedication!
My only gripe is ememies block attacks 80% of time. After some time it gets so annoying. Especially if they block 3 times in a row.
Ya it can be annoying depending on the class you have. Some of them have really simple ways to deal with shields.
Some classes have skills to let you get past blocking. Power Attack on the Barbarian for example goes through blocks. The Cleric later on gets Paladin abilities and can use Smite to do the same. Until then she can cast Flame Pillar. The Wizard can use nonprojectile spells like Enervate which is honestly his best spell until you do his background quest to get Shadow Magic. The monk should just be stunning stuff that they never get a chance to do anything. The Rogue has explosive shot and I believe ransack goes through blacks too? Drizzt has repulsion. I don't remember what Artemis has though.
@@shinon748 ya they mainly have spells and abilities to help them in many situations. I actually didnt think blocking was as annoying in this as it was in Champions series but I can see people getting frustrated if they want to feel super OP with lack luster builds. You must be a DnD OG.
Guess 10k views is to be expected for a niche game that noone knows about unless they both have the nostalgia for it AND somehow stumbled across the handful of tweets mentioning the games comeback with 0 marketing for it. I just want to say this is a genuine top 1% youtuber quality video you made. I am absolutely serious. This is on par with the quality you are used too from creators with hundreds of thousands of views. So absolutely WELL DONE.
Just one thing, maybe put spoiler warnings when you mention what characters to AT THE END OF THE GAME. Even if its a corny, silly story.
Wow thank you so much I really appreciate it. Hopefully can produce some videos that people enjoy and I really appreciate the feedback. I think that's a very good point about the spoilers, I didn't think the story was that important but the video wasn't targeted to me. Thank you for that it means alot.
Glad I hung on to my PS2 copy. As much as I loved the first game, the broader selection of characters and the workshop system really elevated 2 for me. Admittedly, if it's pretty tempting to just pick Borador and just storm through the thing!
As much as I hate on the game out of all in the series, I always wanna go back and replay
I own both games on ps2 and xbox; I play it primarily on xbox from now because the game loads much faster though there's been minor adjustments that nerf skills.
I.E: divine strength in ps2 gives +15 strength but xbox gives +12 strength; the +7 to hit and damage was EXTREMELY good and that one point loss is very noticeable!
Oh wow, I didn't realize there was differences between the versions. That's so interesting.
What's the price for this on Steam right now? Because on Xbox this costs like 30 bucks, which is definitely not worth it.
It's $42 Australian right now, which is about $35 US I think. I thinks its way too much since there is zero added content.
@@WoddahMaloneGaming yeah ok, that's way too much
Nice review though 👍
I have all the Snowblind engine games: Baldurs Gate Dark Alliance 1,2, Champions and Return to arms, Bards Tale , Justice League Heroes and Fallout Brotherhood of Steel. I really hope they remake Champions of Norrath and Return to arms. And also , when does this game release on Playstation? Still not on PsStore😵
I will have to check out bards tale, I never played that one. I'm so surprised this isn't on psstore!
You can find Bards Tale easily cause it has been remastered. I started playing Bards Tale again few days ago. In my opinion it has the best companion system of the Snowblind engine games. And its just a fun game , lots of humour.
@@NakedSnake85 yo thanks for the heads up! Gonna start looking into that one now!
ive had both for pc a while, even played the ports upon release. never at once found it difficult, it was fun, yes not as many spells as the first,, but weapon and armor upgrades were awesome. ty for the review, sub earned, did u do a walkthrough on your channel, id like to watch it. ty
Yo thank you so much!! What class did you play as by the way? No unfortunately I just played this in my spare time. Over on twitch I do stream tons of rpgs though 3 days a week. Soon I will start streaming to UA-cam so there will be more vods and playthroughs to watch.
ya the spells kinda got split up between the characters
I loved playing the Human Barbarian.
So OP in this one!
@@WoddahMaloneGaming Dual wielding 2H weapons in each hand plus some of the nature passives that made him run really fast.
This game is way easier than the first. I re-played the first game when it was released a few months ago and I died a ton on Hard mode. Like, I had to kite around random enemies because they’d 3-shot me.
In this one, I’m in Chapter 3 and I’ve died to enemies maybe twice. And now that I’ve unlocked Ysuran’s Shadow Magic, I’m nigh unstoppable.
So fun using Ysuran once you got his other spells. Such a fun character.
I still to this day like the first one more. The music and the story. The necro is a letdown in the 2nd game... I like them both don't get me wrong but 1 is the one I remember the most. Champions is by far the better out of all these games. I wish it would come to pc.
Ya the first one was way better to me too, but Champions is something special.
For anyone who wants to play monk, you can enchant gauntlets to add damage to your hand to hand combat
I actually didn't know that. That's super dope!
That’s the best way to play the Monk for sure. She can also use staves but excels when you lean hard into hand-to-hand abilities and gear.
@@sheepinatorz5311 I'm gonna have to give this a try
Well done review.
Thank you very much!
thanks for reviewing one of my favorite games of all time. p.s., Borador is a rogue - not a ranger ;)
You hit my complaint with the last act of the game on the nose! Too short & feels rushed. I've never paid any attention to the use of color in the levels in these specific games. Champions of Norrath & Return to Arms, Baldur's Gate Dark Alliance 1& 2 - I always preferred the prior for whatever reason. Thinking about it, it's probably due to the higher fantasy theme paired with the wonderful color palette. Awesome review! Thank you!
Ah damn, haha, thank you for the correction! I'm currently playing through champions now and the color difference is wild!
There is only one question that needs to be asked to determine if this is worth it; does it support online co-op? The last one didn't, and thus wasn't worth a second look. These games were DESIGNED for a co-op experience, it's where the vast majority of the fun comes from, and in this day and age online is a must for that. If they couldn't be bothered to add online, and kept it local only (who the heck even owns two controllers anymore?) it's basically trash.
That's probably my biggest gripe with this game and I'm so angry I didn't mention it in my review. There is no online coop, just local. Definitely not worth the price I'd say. I literally only bought the 2 games for the nostalgia and to do reviews.
i hope they remake champions return to arms too
My heart can't handle it.
Oh wow, I played this sooooooo long ago.
Back before kids were doing all these tik taks!?
Coldfire. The ultimate newbie enchantment (newbie because it works for all). I like the warlord enchantment. One of the most powerful (and coolest in appearance- sorry aquamarine) but shite against undead..... *cough cough*..... maybe not one of the best in the late game
I never experimented much witht the enchantments so this is good knowledge to know. I did far more in champions of norrath.
It is weird. I am very old but the bad graphics just bother me.
Nah I don't find that weird at all. It's certainly not for everyone and if the gameplay isn't overwhelmingly amazing to you then there are tons of flaws in the game for sure. I definitely can understand.
I did buy it, but got a refund, because i didn't think it looked better than back in the days. Think it's to expensive compared to what you get.
Oh they were for sure banking on people's nostalgia here. I'm actually surprised they didn't attempt to even add anything.
Not really. The first one was great but lacked character. The 2nd offers more characters but lacked skill diversity between characters.
I always enjoyed it wmore when I was younger, but then once I played Champions is what hard to go back and play the dark alliance series.
first time playing the sequel, its hardest difficulty is easier than the first one's easy mode lol. Still really fun though
Haha, ya I think having more abilities and being able to enchant definitely gives more options to make it through otherwise tough areas. I was surprised by the amount of people complaining about the difficulty as well.
Wow ... Dwarf Ranger eh? You mean rogue right? did you even play D&D in the day do you even know classes?
Haha, yes I misspoke and no I didn't play dnd.
@@WoddahMaloneGaming do you know RPGS tho? :D I Tease...
@@THAC0MANIC I'm a boomer ok. I'm trying.
@@WoddahMaloneGaming its ok i was born in the 80s.
If i have a critique for this game, it is that it doesent give info jewelry wich should be a thing in 2022. It it allmost seems like there is no point in using jewelry as it doesent give any info on what it gives. Armor and weapons also should be given extra info on stats it gives besides just the atk or defense value, no? Another critique is that you should be able to play a new game +. So you could start from scratch and play out the whole game again slightly more difficult, but you get access to better stuff. As this stuff is playing right now it feels held back and limited to the full potential it truly could have in 2022. In 2004 this was the best game ever on ps2. In 2022 i give it a 5 out of 10
Ya very fair critiques. Some of the things it lacked seemed so easy to fix and very obvious as well which would have just made the experience so much better!
Baldur's Gate dark Alliance 2 oh my goodness I am saying this before I watch the video it is one of the best games in the world I don't care I miss it and I miss the whole series can't wait to get it myself again
Haha, I've always loved these games as well! One of us, one of us!
as a kid i never knew that 2 was the better game over 1
I guess it's still pretty subjective maybe depending on characters but 2 adds a ton more mechanically.
Some parts of the game were rushed because the developer had legal issues and hurried to finish.
Ya I probably should have elaborated on that part a bit more. Hindsight!
Dark Alliance 2 was difficult? I beat this game as a kid, I don't see it.
Haha, I felt the same. I forgot gamers have changed so much in recent years for the most part.
I don't like the second because the melee attacks animation was lazy just one hit and then the attack repeated in the first baldur gate dark alliance the melee was much better smooth and not boring
Ah good point. I didn't even mention that in the vid, maybe because I used a spell caster it wasn't as big of a deal to me at the time.
The attack combinations are locked behind the weapon feats, some characters don't have these feats though, like the necromancer, or unlock them after they unlock their secondary class like the cleric when she gets paladin.
I need champions of norrath and RtA and fallout: brotherhood of steel this ARPGs the best I played up to date for me.
I actually never played the fallout one! I should give that a try.
it is a fallout diablo like game from the same era like champions of norrath it I think it uses even the same engine then baldurs gate dark alliance 2, because it is from the same devs.
Not as good as Diablo II Remaster. Not only does DII R look better, but plays better too both as a single and multiplayer game - and can get it for cheaper too.
I actually haven't played the remaster. Would you say it's worth it if I played the hell out of the original?
@@WoddahMaloneGaming
I played the remaster on XBSX. The graphics, lighting, effects and FPS have all improved yet keeps that retro atmosphere.
I suppose it depends if you liked the original and want an update in visuals and other areas but keeps close to the original then yes.
It wasn't worth buying on PS2 back in the day, so.... no.
Oh damn, you didn't enjoy this game? I was the opposite, I bought this game multiple times. Haha
Yooooo brother, spoiler alert some of us like these shitty twists
You're right, I should have put spoiler alert. I've started doing that in my recent videos.
I loved this game on Xbox.
Haha, same. So nostalgic
For me can’t really recommend the game. Used to play the original game a lot but this PC version suffers from bugs like games not saving and quests not completing after you’ve done them.
See I probably should have spent far more time in the steam version. On first glance it seemed the exact same. That's so annoying, im sorry to hear they pretty much did the same as the first game.
But the fun part, is if you beat it on the hardest difficulties, you get SECRET CHARACTER UNLOCKS (( Side note, Ps2 Emulators cannot keep up with this game, pretty unstable. ))
Haha, ya I played through it with Artemis as well. I played it with pcsx2 to test out and it ran pretty well for the most part. I do have a high end cpu though so maybe that's it.
@@WoddahMaloneGaming drizzt do'urden's weapons are lore accurate for their names Twinkle and Icingdeath, Artemis seemed like... an afterthought in the game, but I still played with both of them, lots of fun, best way to beat those difficulties is cheese mode with a necromancer.
@@Secret_Gaming_Man that's so awesome giving that much attention to Drizzt. Was Artemis in the books as well?
@@WoddahMaloneGaming Well he is Drizzt's Arch Nemesis in the lore, so sufficient to say the voice lines and such are pretty lore accurate, but he seems monstrously underwhelming in the game in comparison to the Drow mad lad.
@@Secret_Gaming_Man oh damn I didn't know that. Might be interesting to learn more about the lore.
Just an input, if you're gonna do video game review, it would be better there's more clip of the said video game more than your face. It's not a podcast.
I appreciate the feedback, I try to make it more entertaining then just a bland review since there's plenty of those out there. I don't enjoy making those kinds of reviews but I have tried them before.
well i love play Femel Charakter and even as a kid (im 21 now) i did that so if u equip and unequipped realy fast u can see there bra :3 (well i will not pay 30€ for that game... but champions of norrath will get me 4sure! xD) well what i wanna say... im already at 60h on champions of norrath "2" (like for PCX2 :3) but im still soooooooooooooo hyped and hope there will be a multiplayer.
Haha, I did the same! Such good games and would love online co op