armengar's Full Review: Neverwinter Nights (PC) for Windows
I am a geek. There I said it. Ever since I could read I have been into reading fantasy books. I have table roleplayed, played computer games into the night and from the early ages of computing I have loved dungeons and dragons esq games but there has always been problems with the implementation. The baldurs gate series were a fantastic game but there were so many bits missing, you couldnt be evil, you had to follow the exact path and the multiplayer aspects were a little ropey.
Then Bioware announced NWN. I drooled at the prospect of playing DnD on a PC with possibly all the extras I needed.
They werent wrong.
The game is fantastic. You can choose a multitude of classes, races and design your own levels, kit, modules. There are hundreds if not thousands of levels to download online. Multiplying is a breeze with nearly all the modules seamlessly integrating into play. You have full control over the character and can enter DM mode if you wish to alter any specifics.
Full 3rd edition rules have been implemented with a few additional rules and skills to be used on the PC only (such as parry and discipline). Feats are used and a superb array of spells up to 9th level (but no epic spells without the new expansion) have been included.
Yes you can time stop. Yes you can disintegrate, yes you can wail of the banshee and summon planar ally and summon pit fiend.
Did I mention there were dragons? A handful of dragons?
The campaign will keep you going for a while. A few weeks of good solid play at least if you game casually then expect a few months. The campaign will take you from level 1 to about level 17/18 but you can start again or move to different chapters (there are 4 in total) retaining your character at any time. Also you can have more than one character on the go at any time, including the same chaaracter at different stages of development - ideal for online play. The campaign can be completed many different ways and you can lean towards an evil character if you so like. You are still funneled towards an overall goal but at least you have some replayability in there.
The voice acting is superb and the background music will wax an wane within the game - changing at important times. characters will often pipe up and help you at certain points and depending on your henchmen (you can choose between about 5/6 different people each with a different class) you can access their hidden quests.
However there is always a negative. The graphics are starting to look a bit dated and although the spell effects are very good the actual models are a little limited - for example teh mouths dont move when they talk which is a little wierd.
But don't let that put you off, playability is the key in my opinion and this game oozes playability (and replayability)
Definately recommended. I would vote 4.5 stars if I could since a 5 would have needed super graphics and a 4 doesnt really do the game justice.
UPDATE:
A couple of extra points regarding the graphics and the style of play.
The graphics are perfectly functional however they have odd quirks. This can work both ways really, on one hand this game can be coaxed to run on a Geforce 2 MX class graphics card onwards, however there are noticeable problems with the overall system.
The game is an isometric 3rd person view game that gives you the control to pan around your characters or zoom in appropriately. Objects are mapped onto your character but occasionally this can appear to be quite crude (if zoomed in) however at a normal playing distance the models are objects are ok certainly not cutting edge but perfectly functional. The cut scenes are rendered using the onboard engine and as such they offer limited actions in the characters movements, couple this with the fact the models mouths don't move makes the cut scenes seem odd. Spell effects are generally more spectacular the higher the spell and are quite good however.
The style of play is not limited to online play only, on the contrary, the game is very modular in design. The basic game ships with a good length module that can be played solo (offline) or on a network or online. The same module can be attempted with a number of people simultaneously and the tendency is to play as a group with all of the players complementing each other. The difficulty of the game scales up depending on the number of people and the levels of the people involved. Plenty of additional modules can be downloaded from enthusiasts and played without too much hassle. The built in module has the ability to "hire" computer controlled henchmen so if you are playing solo (offline) then you can still have some backup muscle if you care to play a weaker sorceror or a sneaky rogue.
In contrast to many other games there are also online persistant worlds available to play online! These are run by fans and are not official worlds, however they are often free and cost nothing to participate in. This can only add to the flexibility and longevity of the game.
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