SKull

I agree with this. The replay value would definitely go up if some of the loot was at least a bit random.

One thing that bugs me sometimes in RPGs is if they get too linear. I really loved the open quality of Baldur`s Gate and thought it was lost in the sequel and in the Icewind Dale games. Not that they were bad or anything, but you were more restricted as far as exploration went. Where BG had 30-40 more or less optional areas you could explore when you wanted to, or even skip entirely, ID had a series of zones you could only do in one order, with too little side questing and player choice. Some scripting is OK though, just not the entire game. I also prefer fixed classes to one class with choices as you go. That way the entire game feels different from the start depending on the class you`re playing. I can understand that some people find this too generic, but you can always play the character against his class. Sometimes melee mages can be fun:)The worst way to do it is something like Oblivion, where you`re constantly jumping around for no reason because you`re trying to get your acrobatics skill up or avoiding running because you don`t want your endurance to increase yet. Please just let me roll a rogue with high acrobatics.... As for gear I thought BG had it down while it got a bit much in BGII. Not that variation is bad, but there`s something to be said for weapons feeling unique too. I still remember the club you got from Bassilus, the talking sword you got off the posessed paladin and about 10-15 other weapons from BG 15 years after release. I don`t think I remember any weapon from any of the other IE games. And that was because good magical items were pretty rare. But the main thing is the story and characters I`d say. If that`s good then I can survive a few game play issues. And I see no reason why it shouldn`t be considering who is working on this game. As long as nothing gets rushed I am expecting a classic.

I`m glad I just found out about this game, otherwise I would have developed anticipation ulcers already. The infinity games were just the best ever and I`ll be happy if this is half as good as Toemrnt and BG.