 Overview
An ancient evil threatens to unleash unspeakable horrors upon Faerun, and
you are the only thing standing in its way. As the leader of a hardy
group of adventurers, your journey begins in the untamed wastes of Icewind
Dale, deep in the Spine of the World Mountains in the Forgotten
Realms. This harsh and unforgiving territory is the setting for your
adventures to come.
In this frozen wasteland the only thing keeping the cold at bay is the
Heartstone gem, which has been stolen. Your stalwart band must battle
its way through hordes of Ice Trolls, Giants, Elementals and the Undead in
its quest to save the little hamlet of Kuldahar, and ultimately the
world. This seemingly simple premise turns into a tale of vengeance
and revenge that spans time and space.
Icewind Dale is a roleplaying game based on Advanced Dungeons
& Dragons Second Edition rules, much like another title developed by
Black Isle Studios, Baldur's Gate. Be prepared, though, for a vastly
different game in terms of storyline. This time revenge is not your
motive; rather you are the leader of a team of adventurers looking for
excitement. What starts out as mere adventuring turns into a race to
stop two warring demigods from destroying the world.
Gameplay, Controls, Interface
Icewind Dale is a classic RPG in the three-quarter or isometric
view. Gameplay icons are located on the left, right and bottom of the
screen. You may either click on the icons or use hotkeys to bring up desired
menus, such as the inventory screen, maps and spell books. Use the
mouse to move your party from point to point. Because of the "fog
of war" feature, only part of the play screen is uncovered at a time,
so be careful as you dungeon crawl -- you never know what you may uncover.
Those familiar with Baldur's Gate will notice immediate
similarities -- both use the Bioware Infinity engine from Bioware
Corp and both games involve you having to play the delivery/errand boy
role. This is an extremely linear story. There is no random wandering
around the wilderness looking for things to do; it is always clear-cut as to
what needs to be done next. The one real advantage Icewind Dale has
over other RPGs is the ability to create up to six player characters without
having to create a multiplayer game. Since you do not have the luxury
of picking up NPCs in Icewind Dale, take advantage of all six slots
and create a group to your liking. This way you get to customize your
party to your particular play style. Select a team of heavy fighters
or create a more balanced group with mages and clerics, but be sure to have
a thief in your midst or the traps will kill you. Think of this game
as a classic linear AD&D campaign. You are led from chapter to
chapter in much the same way that a dungeon master would lead you along.
You start in the tutorial town of Easthaven, running from point to point
and finding and retrieving various items for the townsfolk. Easthaven allows
you to learn game basics quickly, such as moving and buying and selling
gear. From Easthaven you go to Kuldahar, where the real story begins.
There the Archdruid Arundel, who becomes your mentor, will direct your first
few missions; then you are abruptly left on your own. Fortunately your path
is always very clear.
 The constant dungeon-crawling will deter all but the most determined
gamers, as your party is faced with legions of almost unbeatable foes and it
takes a long time to build your party up to a decent level.
Additionally, there are no peaceful ways to resolve conflict; almost
everything will end in a battle unless your foes decide to run. This
is fine, considering it is the only way to acquire better armor and
weapons. Many of the monsters in Icewind Dale are tough enough
that only weapons of +1 or more power will work against them, which can be
frustrating if only a few of your party members possess these items.
The only thing this game really lacks is a momentary pause alerting you to
important information. Since combat is mostly done in real time, this
information scrolls by quickly if you are not paying attention, so be sure
to learn and use the pause feature.
Traveling has been simplified in Icewind Dale. The area maps
only allow you to visit areas you have already learned about. Sadly,
this takes away from the fun exploration aspect of travel. When
traveling, you go straight to your destination; unlike similar games, you
are not subjected to ambushes and the like on your journey. Your party
is not fatigued when you reach new areas and your wounds are usually healed
if you have traveled long enough. While I thought the healing when
traveling factor was a bonus, I was moderately disappointed by the lack of
ambushes and other random events while traveling. In my opinion, if
this were a true AD&D game it would allow for more
exploration. The linear storyline could also use a few side quests.
Graphics
Icewind Dale is very different from Baldur's Gate in terms
of art style. The world map is now an impressionist painting. The character
portraits are much more artistic and stylized. The backgrounds are vivid in
detail, especially the water and ice -- the reflections of the pools and
impression of bitter cold make you feel just how desolate these locations
are. However, don't be fooled into thinking the entire game takes
place in frozen wastelands. You encounter underground Dwarven holds,
ruined Elven strongholds and destroyed temples, which gave the designers
ample opportunity to show off varied environments. I was impressed
with the graphics talent displayed by Black Isle, particularly the rendering
of the Severed Hand, the destroyed Elven stronghold. Icewind Dale
is a graphics masterpiece in terms of setting and environment. I
really felt the cold displayed on screen.
Audio
David Ogden Stiers does an excellent job as the narrator. His
masterful storytelling ability and sense of pacing really moves the game
along. His baritone voice makes the ending much more enjoyable. The
background music has a melancholy feel with a bit of a gothic tribal sound.
In my opinion, the music was able to create the sense of foreboding that the
game required. Finally, the background sounds were impressive;
listening to the snow crunching underfoot and the clang of metal added to
the whole game experience.
Multiplayer Support
Since the story is so linear, the game functions best as a single-player
experience. However, the game does support LAN and Internet play,
allowing you to add individual gamers to your party of six. If you do
decide to play a multiplayer game, be prepared to find a compatible group --
nothing is worse is worse than a bunch of leaders and no followers.
Finding enough players online who complement your style of gameplay can
be challenging at best. This reviewer found it difficult to locate
other players online. It seemed to me that most players were looking
for the single-player aspects of the game. Once I joined a group,
unlike other online games, I experienced no lag on my DSL connection.
System Requirements
Minimum required: Windows 95/98 with DirectX 7.0 or higher, Pentium II
233 MHz, 600 MB hard drive space for installation, 4X CD-ROM drive, DirectX
certified sound card, 100% Microsoft compatible keyboard, mouse.
 Bottom Line
If you are a fan of Advanced Dungeons & Dragons and you enjoyed RPGs
such as Baldur's Gate, you will like Icewind Dale. Overall,
the game has all the elements of a classic fantasy and mystery story, with
surprising plot twists and unexpected turns. It should leave the most
seasoned adventurer hungering for more. The hack-and-slash battles and
the progressive storyline should keep the most demanding RPGer happy.
Unfortunately, the game's linear plot does have a tendency to lead players
around by the nose. The varied character classes and the outstanding
finale only add to the game's replayability.
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