As title. Do the newer version require DirectPlay to run them?

Icewind Dale and Baldirs Gates.

it depends on your system and possibly which build, for example I don't think Gog packs the DX library into their installer [at least they didn't last year] and I know the Beamdog installer does but mostly its your system

an older laptop made for Windows 8 that has been upgraded to 10 is going to need it for everything but a Asus motherboard prob not because they stay up to date at the bios level now before Windows even gets turned on

dirrect play can be turned on or off without much fuss so the best way to answer is just to test i.e if the game launch fails with it off and then works with it on you have your answer

Missing the point. Does Beamdog versions require it to play the games without having windows install it seperately?

My pc is offline and cannot install the directolay. So before I waste my money, it would be nice if anyone answered the question. Appreciate the info.

If your computer is offline, how will you install the game at all? Offline installation is supported, but GOG will not postal mail you a CD of the game data files. You will need to download them from GOG, then transfer them to your offline system. If you can do that, you should also be able to download from Microsoft the relevant DirectPlay installer(s) and transfer those too.

I just disabled DirectPlay on my system and Baldur's Gate Enhanced Edition was still able to start up without it. I started a new single player game and was able to view the multi-player lobby (though that would be a moot point if your system is offline, of course). So, looks like the Enhanced Edition does not require that component.

That's actually exactly what I did (if I'm understanding you right). In Control Panel, I clicked "Turn Windows Features On or Off", then unticked Legacy Components > DirectPlay. It didn't ask me to reboot, but I did anyway just to be thorough.

if you have never had dirrect Play running on that system then it will normally need to download files from Microsoft when you first enable it... & need a restart

after that you can enable or disable it from Features as many times as you like because the files have been stored

no game or system is made to require dirrect play by default... its a case of new systems no being made backwards compatable like putting unleaded petrol into older cars that don't have the modern filter