Baldur's Gate 2 Remake Rumored To Be On The Way

The time to gather your party and venture forth may have arrived once more, as new rumors are saying that Baldur's Gate 2 is being remade, with a key member of its original development team back on board for the project.

Baldur's Gate 3 is one of the most acclaimed games of the decade, being a critical and commercial success. Naturally, people who fell in love with Baldur's Gate 3 would be interested in its two predecessors, and while there are a handful of story connections (especially for people who play the Dark Urge route), the games are pretty antiquated compared to their recent sequel.

While fans are eagerly awaiting news about Baldur's Gate 4 or the upcoming HBO TV show, it seems that Wizards of the Coast might be looking back to the past. According to PC Gamer, a remake of Baldur's Gate 2: Shadows of Amn is in development, with at least one returning staff member on the team.

Baldur's Gate Remakes Rumored To Be On The Way

Image Via Black Isle Studios

According to the leaks, the Baldur's Gate 2 remake is being worked on by Kevin Martens, the co-lead designer of the original, who is also working on Exodus. While the Baldur's Gate 2 remake is confirmed, it's likely that the first game is also being revived, with both projects being worked on consecutively.

It's unclear whether the Baldur's Gate 2 remake is just the same game but with new visuals, or whether it's a ground-up redoing of the concept, to bring it in line with the third entry. Bear in mind that Baldur's Gate 2 was created in the late '90s and used a vastly different version of the Dungeons & Dragons rules, ones that are a lot harder to understand, as anyone who has played the HD remaster can attest.

Indeed, if it is a straight remake of the original game, then modern fans might be left disappointed, as there is nowhere near as much character interaction among the party members as in Baldur's Gate 3, and what romance is there is barely part of the story.

Baldur's Gate 2 also lacked a turn-based mode, with action combat where the player was expected to keep pausing the battle and assign individual commands to the party members. While this system does make the fights a lot quicker when dealing with mobs of weak enemies, it doesn't quite match the feel of Dungeons & Dragons.

If the original Baldur's Gate does get the remake treatment, then it also needs a ton of work, considering how a big chunk of the overworld is boring grasslands, how the main quest takes way too long to get going, and how certain builds (like Rogues and Wizards) can get one-shot by pretty much every enemy for a good chunk of the story.

Issues aside, Baldur's Gate 2 is one of the greatest RPGs of all time, one that badly needs a new coat of paint. Baldur's Gate 2 was when the Bhaalspawn Saga really started firing on all cylinders, and its Throne of Bhaal DLC was one of the most epic conclusions to any RPG story, with the player feeding on the divine power of their deceased deity daddy.

Naturally, the Baldur's Gate 2 remake is still considered to be a rumor, and the news should be taken with a grain of salt until confirmed by Wizards of the Coast. Considering the success of Baldur's Gate 2, it wouldn't be surprising to see the owners of Dungeons & Dragons dusting off the stories that kicked off the saga.

Baldur's Gate

Systems

Released December 21, 1998

ESRB T for Teen: Animated Blood, Mild Language, Use of Alcohol and Tobacco

Engine Infinity Engine

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