I really like the map. Actually, it's not the problem I have. The problem I have is that they don't even try to make it work from a cohesive story perspective.
And you just can't do that in an RPG. A roleplaying game (RPG), is story first, then mechanics. The mechanics are only supposed to help guide the story, but if the mechanics get in the way of the story, you fudge the mechanics so the story remains solid and cohesive and so forth.
I'm not seeing that here. I'm seeing mechanics first, story second, and that is what drives me crazy. If you want a game like that, you don't create an RPG. You create some sort of hack/slash game or whatever where people are able to just go around enjoying the moments and who cares about the story?
They have built a really fun map, but the reason people think it's very gamey and like a theme park is because they aren't keeping things cohesive from a story perspective. Yes, it's fun to roam about and explore and meet all the characters, but the cost of this is that nothing is cohesive. When you are creating a sequel to an incredibly awesome RPG series like Baldur's Gate, you just can't do this. Baldur's Gate has always been about cohesive story first and mechanics second; as any good RPG should be.
So, an implementation of time doesn't mean that you can't complete quests if you don't do them in some sort of timely fashion, unless you can't find a way around it. So, with Waukeen's Rest, for example, the only reason why that would maybe have a specific timeline is if you went to the goblin camp first and discovered that they just raided the place. Until you either get to Waukeen's Rest or the goblin camp, there wouldn't be a time limit on the quest at all. If you go to the goblin's camp and learn the place was just raided, THEN it wouldn't make sense to allow players to long rest and still have the building burning. If you don't go directly to Waukeen's Rest at that time, then you'd miss the quest.
But it's a side quest. It shouldn't be that big of a deal if you don't actually trigger it. And again, the only way you'd lock yourself out of it is if it made sense to lock you out because you learned from someone that the inn was just attacked. If you go to the inn first, it doesn't lock you out.
Ethel meeting the two guys on the road is another example of how time could work to give flavor to the story. If you go straight from the grove to Ethel on the road, you witness the dialogue between the two guys and Ethel. If you don't go straight there, and you long rest, you find bodies instead. An Investigation roll is then made. If you fail, you have no idea what happened. If you succeed, you get a basic idea of what happened. Thus, it adds flavor to the game. Maybe one playthrough you witness the dialogue. Maybe another you get there and only find bodies. Maybe you succeed in the Investigation roll and your character figures out what happened. Maybe you fail and are clueless.
Arrive after two long rests from the time you leave the grove, and you find half-eaten bodies. Now the Investigation roll is higher to succeed in knowing what happened. Arrive three long rests after leaving the grove and you find no bodies, just bloody smears on the ground indicating the bodies were dragged off.
Things like this would provide the game with some movement of time and would make the game so much more replayable. Did it lock you out of the Hag's quest? Nope. It just added some different events in the game based on how many long rests you used.
