I feel like this discussion moved on a bit from "what Larian said and did" to "which type of criticism Larian should listen to.", which is fine I guess.
I want to address something some of you raise here about BG2 being a mainstream game. I don't think it's true. at the very least, I don't think BG2 is as mainstream as letter Bioware products were. If we take kotor for example, their systems are very similar (or at least seem very similar to a casual guy like me. Wait a second, a casual? here on the hardcore forum?! more on that later). The biggest difference, if I put aside the full 3d graphics and the massive increase in voice acting (only the protag in that game is not voiced), is the fact that Kotor is much easier. much more.
now let me tell you about my first experience with BG2 - it was a fucking nightmare. I was much younger, and English is not my first language, but The dialogue was the least of my problems. I felt like this game just keeps pushing me down, as no matter what I do I can't keep my party members from being held\confused\charmed, I didn't even realize there is a difference between these stats half of the time, and spell descriptions were an absolute nightmare to figure out. Of course, my party members eventually died (and this is the best-case scenario, in the worst case they turned into stone or completely disappeared as a result of some other spell), but unlike later Bioware game, they actually die, and I had no idea what to do with it. And over the years games became more streamlined, not less.
I think it took me at least another year to give BG another try, but even that playthrough (which I played on easy) was very hard and I did almost everything following some guides. I think it was worth it, but I also think that I could have enjoyed the game much more if it was a more casual experience. and lo and behold, the best addition to EE for me is, of course, story mode. Over the years I got better after several playthroughs, but I would never dedicate so much time and effort if it weren't for the story and characters.
