The best parts of Baldur’s Gate were the Durlag Tower and some other strange monsters. I don’t like the characters, really, and the intrigues of the plot are not hugely deep or appealing the way the ruins in Icewind Dale are.
Final Update: At 11:30 EST last night, I beat the core game itself. Fairly certain I was over-leveled for it but I made it happen. I may or may not go through Heart of Fury mode. Not sure if that has improved versions of various items like the sequel does. Not going to bother with updates on that if I do play, though.