Neverwinter Nights 2

• BioWare Digital Distribution
• Neverwinter Nights
• Neverwinter Nights (1991)
• Neverwinter Nights 2: Mask of the Betrayer
• Neverwinter Nights 2: Storm of Zehir
• Neverwinter Nights: Community Expansion Pack
• Neverwinter Nights: Devil in the Stone
• Neverwinter Nights: Hordes of the Underdark
• Neverwinter Nights: Shadows of Undrentide
• Neverwinter Nights: Witch's Wake

• Mask of the Betrayer contest

• Mysteries of Westgate interview
• Neverwinter Nights 2 interview

• Mask of the Betrayer review  

NWN2 alignment is for suckers ( Mod news )
posted by DarkUnderlord on Thu 29 July 2010, 07:18:22
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oldmanpaco is working on an as yet Untitled NWN2 Mod and he needs your feedback:

I already have a framework for a story and a general layout of the beginning 1/3 of the module. And while the story is not necessarily lulzy there may be lulzy side quests and characters.

Also all of the characters are going to be from the Codex. Yes you will have the chance to interact with all your favorite on-line personalities.

He wants your help on deciding which general Class the PC should be and whether he should include alignment shifts:

I hate alignment in NWN. You end up either LG or CE. The problem is neutral choices DO NOT MOVE YOU TOWARDS NEUTRAL ALIGNMENT. I have no idea why this mechanic has never been implemented in any game.

That being said I have no real desire to implement an alignment system. I would prefer to keep track of actions as opposed to alignment.

Case in point: I, as a LG char, sent that family to be eaten by those ape things in MotB. I shifted a total of 20 point towards evil but still retained my LG status. I then killed all the apes so no one would know what I did. Still LG.

Honestly what is the point. Actions that are publicly know should effect reactions from people. Alignment is for suckers.

I agree.

You can blame this news post on self-gratification.

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Planescape Trilogy - Purgatorio Demo ( Mod news )
posted by baby arm on Sat 14 March 2009, 19:57:28
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The demo for NWN2 mod Purgatorio from Rogue Dao Studios has hit Neverwinter Vault. From one of the lead Rogue Daoians, Bill Harper:

I really gave it my all people, tried my best to keep this promise we made to you and keep this deadline. Missed by a few hours, I think. I've got nothing left to give for the minute, it's all been given to this noble effort. And I'm far beyond exhausted from it. But despite all that, I'm still very happy (and relieved) that we'll get to share the fruit of our long labors with all of you, and soon.

We really hope you enjoy what you you experience. We hope this demo is at least worth some of the long wait. We are certainly proud of what we've got to offer you.

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NWN2 releases new foreign voice-overs ( Game news )
posted by DarkUnderlord on Sun 07 December 2008, 07:32:25
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Apparently there's been a long-standing problem with foreign language voice-overs in NWN2. Namely that it used recycled sounds from NWN1 and many NPCs spoke English. For two years, people who didn't speak English have needed to use a fan-made patch. Well, it seems that Obsidian thought it'd be nice that while they're making an expansion pack, they'd record a bunch of new foreign language voice-overs. Here's the low down from the Germans (care of Google Translate):

It is finished. It has lasted for a little while and we've fought hard, but now receive not only the owner of Storm of Zehir the corrected language files for NWN2. Proud of you, may I herewith the fruits of cooperation between the European Community Representatives with Atari present Friday. Micha, the Friends tears in their eyes grow, his Sprachfix is the first time in two years is no longer necessary.

The download is 445 MB hard and for all localized versions (German, French, Spanish) of Neverwinter Nights 2 with / without Mask Of The Betray. Storm of Zehir in the new language files already contain the patch is the case no longer needed. In the original English versions did not know the bug before, they need the patch should also not.

The executable file can be downloaded directly executed, language version and installation folder will automatically be recognized. The patch will override the default folder in the installation directory.

The correct sequence for a new installation would be:
- NWN2 basic game
- Mask Of The Betray
- Language patch or Storm of Zehir

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NWN2's mod tools coming to an RPG near you ( Mod news )
posted by DarkUnderlord on Tue 24 June 2008, 13:22:13
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In a summary of Josh Sawyer's comments about the NWN2 toolkit, find out how the decision to give modders more power potentially back-fired. However, it also talks about Obsidian's upcoming titles:

"BioWare's approach to the Neverwinter Nights toolset was to go for ease-of-use, so that people could get small things running quickly and then expand from there," said Sawyer. "Obsidian's approach was to cater for the hardcore, though - dramatically increase the level of control, meaning that more things could be altered. That would make the barrier to entry higher, but we thought that would similarly raise the quality of what was produced."...

And while it may seem that the company fluffed its chance with Neverwinter Nights 2, continual patches - and improvements brought about during the development of the game's expansion packs - have helped address some of the issues that disappointed the community at launch, and have helped shape the development of the next generation of Obsidian's tools now being used on both the un-named Aliens RPG and forthcoming espionage RPG Alpha Protocol.

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NWN2 Expansion 'Storm of Zehir' in Development ( Game news )
posted by El Dee on Mon 09 June 2008, 22:24:59
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Obsidian Developers Anthony Davis and Nathaniel Chapman confirm and field some questions about the upcoming Storm of Zehir expansion for NWN2 here at the Codex.

Thanks, Starwars!

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Purgatorio Interview at IGN's NW Vault ( Interview )
posted by El Dee on Thu 05 June 2008, 16:51:22
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IGN interviews Mike Dismukes of Rogue Dao Studios about their upcoming mod Purgatorio for NWN2:

I see testing is underway. How soon until the Vault announces that you are opening the gates to Purgatorio?

We are still debating about the best way to handle this. As anyone who has built a mod can tell you, it gets harder to work on the closer that you get to the end. Right now I’m thinking that we should do an extended playtest release and continue to refine the module rather than try to make it all perfect and release it much later. I would like to set the first group of five playtesters loose on the streets of Sigil in about a month. I’m not ready to make any predictions about a public release date yet.

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Neverwinter Nights 2 Mac version preview ( Preview )
posted by Ausir on Sat 23 February 2008, 06:56:42
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Inside Mac Games has a new preview of the Mac version of Neverwinter Nights 2 to be published next week by Aspyr Media.

Wizards, orcs, witches, brash young heroes, they're everywhere these days. They're in books, movies, games, a guy can't throw a rock without hitting some fantastical creature in the face. Aren't we sick of it by now? Seriously, it's a D&D nerd's dream out there! There's always something new just around the corner. Case in point, Aspyr Media is about to whisk Neverwinter Nights 2 to Intel-based Macs around the globe. So, the question is, should anybody care? Will this game bring us anything fun and worthwhile? Is NWN2 possibly worth a mark on the calendar? How many licks does it take to get to the Tootsie Roll center of a Tootsie Pop? Let's find out...

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MotB interview at GameBanshee ( Interview )
posted by Vault Dweller on Wed 31 October 2007, 21:52:58
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GameBanshee has posted an interesting interview with Obsidian's Kevin Saunders, MotB lead designer.

The expansion focuses more on an inward story combined with cosmological elements than on any of the classic down-to-earth approaches of RPG storytelling. Why did you choose this route?

It was the type of story we wanted to tell. NWN2 had a classic fantasy RPG story and we didn't want to do that again. As an expansion, we felt we could try something different and gamble a bit with the story. The majority of people who buy an expansion for a game like NWN2 are pretty hard core gamers and role-players and we thought they'd appreciate an atypical story.

The expansion has been praised for its dialogue, story, and NPCs, but somewhat criticized for bugs and gameplay elements like the camera, UI, and spirit meter. How do you feel about such criticism?

All opinions are valid when it comes to something like game design. Our goal is to entertain the player, so when someone dislikes an aspect of the game, we've disappointed that person in that regard. I'll briefly discuss each of the elements you mention separately.
...
With regard to the spirit meter, I think the situation is slightly more complicated. I'm not sure that the system itself was flawed, but rather our presentation of it. For example, some reviews have mentioned that the "evil" path is inferior to the "good" one. But there are actually some huge game play benefits you gain by succumbing to the spirit hunger. You gain new combat abilities as your craving increases and you also acquire unique essences that can be used to create artifacts or add very powerful enchantments to your existing items. So I think where we could have improved the spirit-eater implementation was to better train the player in how the system works and what the trade-offs were.

Now back to your original question: how do I feel about the criticism? Terrible. The team did a fantastic job creating Mask of the Betrayer and, because of a couple specific decisions, they aren't receiving the praise they deserve for their incredible work over the past year.

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GameZone reviews MotB - 8.3 ( Review )
posted by Vault Dweller on Mon 29 October 2007, 15:38:33
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GameZone has posted a MotB review, giving the game 8.3 (7.8 for gameplay), mentioning nothing about the choices, and implying that you need a PhD in DnD to play it.

Mask of the Betrayer is not a starting point for D&D novices, or even those new to the NWN experience. If you don’t have a clue what you are doing, this game will eat you alive. It is better to work through the NWN 2 original campaign before moving on to Mask of the Betrayer. Yes, that sounds like a lot of work, but when you run into a game that is thoughtful in one regard, and immersive in another, you tend to want to savor the experience.

This is a truly solid and enjoyable expansion. It can be very hard on the player, but part of the magic of the NWN series is that it requires you to think about what you are doing.

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Our Mask of the Betrayer review ( Review )
posted by Vault Dweller on Fri 26 October 2007, 16:48:33
More info on Neverwinter Nights 2 - More info on Obsidian Entertainment

I've finished Obsidian's Mask of the Betrayer twice and was pleasantly surprised at how good and well-crafted the game was. Allow me to share my excitement with you:

That’s where the game starts to shine so brightly that you completely forget about any flaws the game has and get lost in a well crafted gameworld. It’s like a dream come true – a non-linear game loaded with well-written dialogues, interesting quests, more choices than you can handle, and enough consequences and to make the game highly replayable. It’s hard to imagine a better feature list.

I can't stress it enough. The choices are everywhere. There are plenty of consequences. What you did may even cost party members their lives. Many characters respond to and recognize your choices, commenting on what you did and affecting your gameplay. I couldn't believe how many opportunities to do things differently the game offers.

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