Even tweaking down the performance options doesn't help much. Since you'll probably begin the game from scratch, the first changes you'll notice are to the character classes. Paladins walk taller with tougher holy powers. Bards learn some different tunes. Sneak attack is a 3 rd Edition rule and, in place of the traditional backstab, allows the thief to do additional damage when behind or flanking an enemy without sneaking.
Crippling strike lowers a monster's to-hit and damage rolls on a successful sneak attack.
Tracking, potentially, could be the coolest new skill in the game as it allows the ranger to get a feel for an area's inhabitants as well as its recent history upon first arriving. This would have been great in another game with a more varied storyline but fails to impress here. Once your party attains ninth level, they can travel to Lonelywood where Heart of Winter's new travails take place. If you remember, a certain shack in Kuldahar never opened. Well, it does now.