Even though Baldur’s Gate: Dark Alliance is almost two decades old, it still feels fresh in some ways. In many ways it also feels like a dated PS2, GameCube, and Xbox era game which makes sense since it launched in 2002. It makes double sense knowing that this remaster barely had anything added to it besides a visual upgrade. 

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The better idea would be to hold out for the sequel which has been teased to also return. That is the more robust experience. There’s also the spiritual successor, Dungeons & Dragons: Dark Alliance, coming out on June 22 to look forward to. All that being said, there are plenty of reasons why this barebones remaster is still worth a look. 

10 Best: Co-Op

There’s nothing better than a co-op game with a friend, especially with an old-school RPG like this. The overall Dungeons and Dragons series is all about co-op play so this makes sense. It may seem old and mindless as a hack and slash game today but it is good arcade fun. The ability to import heroes and continue to play infinitely is also a plus to get multiple playthroughs set up. 

9 Worst: Only Local Play

There are two issues that weigh down this co-op experience. One, it is local co-op only. Thankfully the quarantine is starting to lift in areas, meaning that one can invite friends over to play again. It would be rough if this remaster released during the pandemic when online play was essential. The other odd thing is that there are three playable characters from the start but there is only two-player co-op. It may be less odd knowing that there is an unlockable character later on, but it’s still weird. 

8 Best: 4K Remaster

For a PS2, Xbox, and or GameCube game that is two decades old, this still looks great. That is all thanks to the 4K visuals found in this remaster. It’s more like the developers smoothed things over. Not everything looks spectacular, but most characters look astounding for how old this RPG is.

7 Worst: Level Variety

As good as this remaster can look in 4K, the thing that hasn’t improved visually is the level designs. The game starts off heavy with cellars, sewers, and crypts.

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Eventually, players will get out of underground environments but even still there isn’t much variety. That shouldn’t be surprising for a hack and slash RPG of this nature. Diablo III isn’t much better but it’s still worth mentioning on the downside of things. 

6 Best: Fast Loads

The PS4 and Xbox One versions of this game have great load times. Playing it on the new consoles is even better but loads overall are a snap. This is good because it allows players to exploit a certain cheat in the game, quicker. That will be explained later but exploit or not, just getting a remaster like this that loads like a dream is always something worth praising. 

5 Worst: Enemy Variety 

Get ready to kill a lot of rats, skeletons, and other various Dungeons and Dragons fodder. It’s just like the gripe against the level design. The enemies just don’t have a lot of variety to them. Even the bosses aren’t that mesmerizing. There’s one that’s just an orb and it doesn’t even do the fighting. It’s a sure sign of older RPGs. 

4 Best: Voice Acting

There is a little bit of rasp to the audio and said audio can get buggy, which is to say effects can cut out. Overall the game sounds great. This is all thanks to the developers casting huge voice-over legends back in the 2000s including Jennifer Hale, Tony Jay, and Cam Clarke, just to name a few. Even the lip sync in the game is good which is likely thanks to the 4K upgrade rather than the game itself naturally doing this. 

3 Worst: Story

The downside to the voice acting is that what the characters are saying isn’t that interesting. The plot is pretty typical for a Dungeons and Dragons campaign or just an RPG for that matter. There is an evil guild with someone even more powerful behind the scenes. Even at this point in 2002, it was an old hat. Story usually comes second in a game like this anyway so it’s not surprising.

2 Best: Exploits Still Work

This game had a very well-known exploit fans discovered worked throughout many of these games. There is a way to duplicate items which leads to excess gold.

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All one has to do is have two characters, two separate save files, and two controllers. One can import a character from any file in the game to the current one to then drop items. Repeat this import process to get gold fast. 

1 Worst: Price

Is this game really worth $30? The short answer is, yes, for those looking for an old-school co-op RPG. That price tag is a lot to consider though. Even Square Enix has gotten better about their remaster prices. All this game added was 4K support so does that really justify re-releasing it as an almost full-priced digital game? For those on the fence, it may be worth waiting to see it drop down to $20, which seems more palatable. 

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