Heroes With Glasses

Hey! I've recently been enjoying some classic computer games. Here's your chance to enjoy them, too -- the Heroes with glasses way! For a limited time, you can download and install custom portraits and sounds for Baldur's Gate! This page has all the available files! Right now, there are portraits for the Hero, Wally, and BEPA. There are only sounds for the Hero right now, because we haven't recorded the others yet! 

How to install custom portraits and sounds in Baldur's Gate:

(In what follows, XXXXXXX stands for the name of one of these sets of portraits or sounds (HWGHero, HWGWaly, or HWGBepa). You can rename them if you like, but be sure that the entire set of sounds gets the same name, and that it is no longer than 7 letters in length!) 

1. Locate the directory on your computer in which the game resides. One good place to check is c:\Program Files\Black Isle\Baldur's Gate. Create a folder there titled "Portraits" if one does not exist already. Make sure there is a folder titled "Sounds". 

2. Download and save the pictures to that Portraits folder. (To save these pictures there, right click on them with your mouse, and choose "Save as".) Make sure the names are in the format XXXXXXXS.bmp and XXXXXXXL.bmp. 

3. Download and save the sounds to the Sounds folder (by right clicking the links and choosing "save as"). Make sure the names are in the format XXXXXXXa.wav through XXXXXXXw.wav. (Only a-m are REALLY necessary, but for all possible sounds, download a-w.) 

4. Start the Baldur's Gate game, load a saved game or create a new one, and click the "head" icon on the left side of the screen to bring up the character's record. Click the "Customize" button in the lower part of the screen. This should bring up several options. Choose "Appearance", and then hit the "Custom" button at the bottom. 

5. For the medium portrait, click on XXXXXXXL. For the small portrait, click on XXXXXXXS. Make sure they look right in the previews before you click "Done". 

6. Choose "Sounds" and then click XXXXXXX. You can preview all the sounds by repeatedly pressing the play button. Click "Done" when finished! There you go! Now your heroes have the look and sound of my heroes! 

Some notes: these work fine on my computer, but not all computers are created equal, so don't blame me if they don't work on yours! The same files can probably be used in other similar games like Icewind Dale, but I haven't tried it yet. Also, if you are playing a multiplayer game, everyone's computer needs the custom files downloaded, or the other players will only see a blank box. You have permission to us these pictures and sound for other private, non-commercial uses (like on your desktop). Finally, Baldur's Gate and all related things are owned, trademarked, or copyrighted by Black Isle or Bioware or Interplay or TSR and none of this is intended to infringe on any of their rights. For more information about the games or customizing them, visit the website at http://www.interplay.com/bgate/.