Icewind Dale 2 was a solid sequel without glitter. In hindsight, it turns out to be a great RPG

The first Icewind Dale came together under pretty good conditions. Even though it was simpler than Baldur’s Gate, since it leaned more towards the Diablo style with less story (but still a decent one) and more dungeon crawling, it still managed to win over fans of old-school isometric RPGs. It captivated with its artistic vision featuring winter landscapes, enjoyable side quests, and even though the party members were anonymous characters created by us, the whole thing had a lot of personality. Moreover, the first IWD excelled with music composed by Jeremy Soule.

Related:Icewind Dale 2: Enhanced Edition is Here; Adds New Party Members and Improved Interface

The second installment was put together in a rush, and when it came out, a lot of people looked down on it as a decent follow-up but lacking the cold, raw edge of the first game. Furthermore, the market was already dominated by three-dimensional competition, including Morrowind and Neverwinter Nights. Looking back, I gotta admit, that attitude was a mistake. Icewind Dale 2, one of the last games from Black Isle alongside Baldur’s Gate: Dark Alliance 2, is an excellent two-dimensional RPG that, when approached without prejudice, shows more spirit and edge than we might expect.

Icewind Dale 2. Black Isle Studios

Return to Icewind Dale

I must admit that upon first encountering Icewind Dale 2, I felt a slight disappointment. Its predecessor introduced me to the world of the Infinity Engine. The sequel just didn't have that mysterious, intimate adventure aura that pulls you through icy wastelands. The music theme, although inspired by Soule's amazing work, was a bit too epic for my taste—somewhat reminiscent of Inon Zur's style. Everything was too... ostentatiously unsubtle and straightforward. At least at first glance.

You know, Icewind Dale 1 kicks off with a bunch of scrappy adventurers joining an expedition to check out the troubles plaguing Kuldahar, a town nestled in the roots of a giant oak tree. The story was simple yet charming, unfolding nicely and at a relaxed pace between the dungeon-clearing sessions. Set several decades later, Icewind Dale 2 throws us straight into the action—we start in the besieged Targos, trying to help its residents. The town has been invaded by the mysterious Legion of the Chimera, spearheaded by an army of goblins and orcs.

At first, it seems pretty simple – you're just controlling up to six anonymous mercenaries – but soon enough, you realize the writers at Black Isle have really added some depth to the story. Sure, it's about a clash of two forces, but first off, a lot of the quests are brilliantly written with humor and edge, and secondly, the main storyline turns out to be quite layered. The Legion of the Chimera is a group of quite complex antagonists who have very good motivation for what they do. This story dives deep into themes of being different and feeling rejected. If we take a closer look, we can find some really moving tales about outsiders who just couldn't fit into the usual way of life.

Of course, for those who switched from the recently released epic Baldur’s Gate 2 or the philosophical Planescape: Torment, the slightly lesser complexity of the plot and the lack of personality in the party characters were also significant drawbacks. However, once expectations are lowered, the level of writing turns out to be quite decent and stands out above the typical level for the genre. The game can surprise with quite witty dialogues and humor.

Moreover, the designers deserve some praise for creating a long, comprehensive, and diverse campaign with intriguing tactical challenges, despite budget and time limitations; it still stands strong today.

Icewind Dale 2. Black Isle Studios

Dungeons & Dragons 3.0 magic

The mechanics still hold up today, and they're way more complex than in the first Icewind Dale, even if you consider the beefed-up Heart of Winter version. Previous games based on the Infinity Engine made use of the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons system, which was a specific system with many limitations (essentially, we chose race, class, gender, alignment, rolled stats, and that was it).

Icewind Dale 2, like Neverwinter Nights, was connected to the much more flexible and player-imagination-friendly third edition of Dungeons and Dragons – and at that time, it was a breath of fresh air. We had more control over choosing skills and perks, which could also affect dialogues (a bit less in IWD 2, but still). Plus, every time you leveled up, each race allowed for multiclassing. This opened up opportunities for creating wild combinations and breaking the system with creative builds. This only enhanced the game's charm.

Odd stats, like Trak0 or striving for the most negative armor class, disappeared (I remember the latter fondly, it may just be me, though). In this edition, we had more playable races and sub-races (like dark elves), so there was plenty to mess around with—and maybe even do a bit of roleplaying.

Icewind Dale 2. Black Isle Studios

Old school

From a technical standpoint, it was a classic 2D with stunning, hand-crafted backgrounds integrated into the engine, nice spell effects, and simple yet charming animations of characters created from templates (which didn't quite align with the outstanding, painterly character portraits). The monsters made a certain impression – as they had to, since there was a lot of fighting. Basically, it was about characters standing around and hitting each other (or casting spells, or shooting with slingshots, bows, or crossbows) in the rhythm of turns hidden behind the illusion of real-time, with active pause.

Thanks to the cool details from the third edition of D&D and the well-thought-out layout of locations, traps, and challenges, winning battles was a blast, especially for those who enjoyed that tactical, isometric combat style reminiscent of the Infinity Engine.

While we're on the topic, it's good to remember that for years, this was the last game released on the Infinity Engine. Well, at least until Beamdog capitalized on our sentiments and released Baldur’s Gate: Siege of Dragonspear and the preceding Enhanced Edition series. What's interesting, IWD 2 never got an official enhanced edition. So if players want improvements over the original, they have to rely on mods and unofficial patches. Luckily, there's a pretty big library of those. I had fun with the NPC Project, which adds party members with their own stories, dialogues, and personalities. I also tried out the Enhanced Edition, a fan-made attempt to upgrade the game, and it's actually pretty decent.

Icewind Dale 2. Black Isle Studios

How to play Icewind Dale 2 today?

Although we never got an official enhanced edition (only a fan project is available), the classic game can be purchased on GOG in a complete edition for 9 bucks (of course, you can always hunt for old boxed copies if you enjoy collecting discs).

If you haven't played it yet or wish to relive the old-school D&D adventure as the gods of Black Isle and the former Bioware intended, it's worth giving Icewind Dale 2 a shot. It's still an awesome old-school RPG that offers loads of straightforward fun and hours of adventure in a frosty fantasy world. That's all there is to it.

Icewind Dale II

August 27, 2002

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• Overview

• oldschool / retro
• Black Isle Studios
• RPG games
• Retro Gaming