Icewind Dale: Enhanced Edition Reviews

Classic

good

Incredible game. Highly recommended.

Icewind Dale: Enhanced Edition is a revitalized version of the classic 2000 RPG developed by Black Isle Studios, faithfully updated and expanded by Beamdog for modern platforms including Steam. As an Enhanced Edition, it offers not only the original’s deep tactical combat and rich narrative set in the unforgiving, frozen tundra of the Forgotten Realms but also quality-of-life improvements, graphical polish, and new content. For fans of old-school party-based RPGs, this edition serves as both a nostalgic journey and a refined entry point for new players interested in classic Dungeons & Dragons style adventures. At its heart, Icewind Dale: Enhanced Edition remains a testament to the tactical depth and character customization that defined the early 2000s RPG scene. Unlike other D&D adaptations that focused heavily on story, Icewind Dale emphasizes combat encounters and dungeon crawling, with sprawling caves, ancient ruins, and snowbound towns serving as backdrops for continuous battles against goblins, undead, dragons, and other deadly foes. The game uses the second edition Advanced Dungeons & Dragons ruleset, which can feel complex and demanding but rewards players who invest time mastering its nuances, such as positioning, spells, and party synergy. The Enhanced Edition maintains this complexity while smoothing out clunky elements with an improved interface, streamlined inventory management, and better resolution support, making the experience less cumbersome without sacrificing depth. Character creation and party composition are critical pillars of the game’s appeal. Players can create a party of up to six adventurers from a wide range of classes, races, and kits, allowing for diverse tactical approaches. Whether opting for a frontline tanking warrior, a ranged archer, a spellcasting wizard, or a support cleric, the game encourages experimentation and strategic planning. The new Enhanced Edition adds options like multiclassing and custom portraits, enriching the role-playing aspect. Furthermore, the revamped UI offers clearer information on spells, abilities, and statuses, reducing the frustration of juggling multiple complex systems. The AI also sees improvements, with better pathfinding and combat behavior, though it still occasionally falters in tight situations. One of the defining features of Icewind Dale is its atmosphere, heavily influenced by its setting in the harsh, frozen region of Icewind Dale within the Forgotten Realms universe. The tone is dark and brooding, with a constant sense of danger lurking beneath the snowy landscape. The Enhanced Edition enhances this atmosphere with improved visuals—higher resolution backgrounds, refined character sprites, and more vibrant spell effects—while maintaining the original art style’s charm. The soundtrack, composed by Jeremy Soule, is iconic and evocative, blending haunting melodies with epic orchestral pieces that perfectly complement the game’s cold, hostile world. Ambient sound effects, from howling winds to crackling fire, further immerse players in this unforgiving environment. Narratively, Icewind Dale is less focused on intricate plot twists and more on classic fantasy storytelling—heroes venturing into darkness, battling evil forces threatening the North. The writing is solid, with plenty of memorable NPCs, side quests, and lore scattered throughout the world, though it’s not as character-driven or dialogue-heavy as contemporaries like Baldur’s Gate. The Enhanced Edition includes the Heart of Winter expansion and the Trials of the Luremaster content, expanding the main campaign with new areas, tougher enemies, and additional storylines that provide extended replayability and further challenge. These expansions integrate seamlessly, offering players more depth without disrupting the game’s pacing. While Icewind Dale: Enhanced Edition is a remarkable update, it is not without drawbacks. The game’s pacing can feel slow by modern standards, with lengthy dungeon crawls and a combat system that rewards patience over action. New players unfamiliar with the AD&D 2nd edition rules might find the learning curve steep, even with the enhanced interface and tutorial additions. Some quest designs can feel repetitive, and the lack of voice acting may detract from immersion for those accustomed to contemporary RPG productions. Additionally, despite interface improvements, managing inventory and spell memorization still requires careful attention and can occasionally feel tedious. Multiplayer support is another welcome feature in the Enhanced Edition, allowing up to six players to collaborate on adventures cooperatively. This adds a new layer of enjoyment and strategic coordination, making combat encounters more dynamic and social. However, online stability and matchmaking can be inconsistent, occasionally leading to frustrating disconnects or lag, though these issues are not game-breaking. In summary, Icewind Dale: Enhanced Edition is a compelling blend of nostalgia and modern convenience. It preserves the intricate, tactical gameplay and atmospheric world-building of the original while introducing meaningful improvements that ease some of its more archaic aspects. For RPG veterans who crave the feel of classic Dungeons & Dragons campaigns, this edition is a must-play that revitalizes a beloved title without compromising its core identity. Newcomers willing to embrace its complexity will find a rich, challenging, and rewarding RPG experience set against the haunting beauty of a frozen wilderness filled with danger and adventure. Rating: 9/10

Playing through this again. I beat it when it wasn't enhanced edition. I beat it on GOG. Don't let the hours fool you. It is a solid game. Basically a dungeon crawler b2. A classic that deserved the enhanced edition. My only gripe is that it is hard to tell if something is a magic item because of the new UI. So when you click on the diamond to look at items you basically have to right click every thing.

A Dungeon Crawler that doesn't reward you with challenge or story Being made with the same engine as Baldur’s Gate 1 and 2, I had high expectations. I always heard it was more combat-focused, but that never bothered me. At first, the game felt unique and interesting. The ability to fully customize your entire party was something I had never done before. But then the game begins, and you're thrown into a world with little to no background on your character or reason to care about what’s happening. This is what made the original Baldur’s Gate so amazing — the story, the worldbuilding, and how your character fit into it all was just as important as the gameplay. I finished the game feeling exhausted by the endless mobs of enemies. They lacked the uniqueness of previous games, making combat repetitive and dull. After completing the main story, I tried the DLC hoping for improvement — but it was even worse. Some maps were so tedious that I just cast invisibility and ran straight to the objective to avoid the combat. Even the so-called "bosses" were surprisingly easy. If you enjoyed Baldur’s Gate 1 and 2, I can’t recommend this game.

I remember playing the original Icewind Dale when it released all those years ago as a boy. I never got past chapter 1, I just always seemed to get bored towards the end of that chapter. I decided that I would finally commit to seeing this game through, which I've finally managed to do, some 25 years later. It's a complete mixed bag to be honest. First point of contention is difficulty scaling. For the record I played on the Core Rules difficulty (for 99% of the game - see below). There were parts of this game where fights were tough and you had to really think or prepare to get through them. I have no real issue with that generally but the scaling just seemed to shoot up out of nowhere at times. You'd be chilling through an area then one fight would just wipe you out, there were times where I was really just relying on lucky rolls to pop the big threat before they either obliterated me or I got swarmed by their adds. A mob/mini-boss was able to just 4-tap my -11 AC fighter, hitting him for 25-30 damage per hit. Second is bugs/glitches. There were several bugs that occurred throughout which generally led to immersion breaking confusion until I would eventually look things up to see it's not just me. I swear there were quests that I completed that didn't award me exp at times. There were quests that wouldn't work because I happened to find the body with the object on before I found an NPC to speak to who was in an obscure location. There's a boss towards the end that just bugs out and you can't kill him and have to reload. Third is the general story. It's actually quite linear, there's no extra little locations to visit like in BG1/2. At times it feels quite railroady in that somehow your party just seems like it's got dragged into this. I also miss and I think it's worse for having, no real companions. Being able to build your whole party is great in some aspects but in others you miss out on having character dynamics within your party, personalities that have their own interests and quest/objectives. Final point (unless I think of more), the last area/fight. What really turned this game from an "it's alright" to a "I don't think I'll play that again" was the last area/fight. Without giving too much away. Towards the later part of the game (and unless I missed it, no "this is the point of no return") you essentially get teleported into a new zone. Leading up to this point you've had no really easy way of getting back to the world map to restock or do other things, so I got to this point with limited resources as it was. Once you get teleported, from what I could tell, there was no vendor, there was no access to the world map and there was no way to grind any levels should you need to. What this meant for me was, I got to the last boss and was seemingly under-leveled (see above issue with quests bugging) and slightly under-geared (maybe). It led to a fight that was near (if not just) impossible to beat with what I had and I had no way of leaving the zone to come back later when stronger and more stocked. With an 'un-skippable' dialogue/ cut scene leading to the final fight it became very frustrating, very quickly. I just ended up putting it on easy just to get through it so I could end my suffering... Otherwise I just felt soft-locked. Overall I had an OK time for the most part, but to end on two fights where one is bugged and he won't die, to one that was seemingly impossible (in my circumstances) with no way for you to correct, I was left with a sour taste in my mouth from the whole thing. If I have an itch for this sort of game in future, I'll just stick to BG1/2. This game looks like them but it has none of their personality.

It's a really great game, one of the best, a classic , I have played many hours on.