The Computer Role-Playing Game Genre
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In 1997, Wizards of the Coast bought TSR and relocated the operation to Washington. Publication of AD&D materials, which had been suspended for half a year due to distribution and financial problems, resumed, and Wizards started the process of resuscitating AD&D and the AD&D computer licence. D&D had for a time disappeared from the CRPG scene. Interplay had first taken a licence to make a D&D game in late 1994 just before SSI gave up their licence. Acclaim also made an abortive attempt at a game with a D&D licence. Interplay seemed to be using the licence like SSI had done to make poor games to be sold purely on the D&D connection and their first games - Blood and Magic (1996) and Descent to Undermountain (1998) did nothing to dispel this view.
The release of Baldur's Gate in 1998, proved that good games could have a D&D licence. Baldur's Gate was not a very original game in terms of setting or main gameplay ideas, it was a pretty good reproduction of the TSR's Forgotten Realms World and the AD&D 2nd edition rules on a computer. (There were a few rule inconsistencies as the game could not balance every possible character class combination or implement every rule. What made the game groundbreaking was that it showed in detail every area of the Sword Coast in considerable graphic beauty with a strong accompanying sound track and to do this it came on five CDs. These regions have a day and night and different events and encounters can happen at different times of day.
