NWN2: Mask of the Betrayer - Review @ CVG

magerette

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Computer and Video Games website has given their impressions on Obsidian's recently released expansion pack to Neverwinter Nights 2, Mask of the Betrayer, scoring it 8.4/10:
The story begins in your new homeland, Rashemen, which is wrapped up in the aftermath of a rebellion against the gods, and the betrayal of Myrkul, the god of Death (who rather fittingly was killed)...
...It's a whole new tale, with all-new locations, companions, etc. Where it falls short, however, is with the levity.

NWN2 was immediately joyful, with hilarious characters and dialogue juxtaposing the dark story. MotB is far more serious, and while the companions fulfil the role of representing personality extremes, none of them are particularly entertaining company.
Things pick up very quickly after[ the opening dungeon]... and the story - while embroiled in yet more 'chosen one' cliché - flows neatly. And Obsidian's trademark ethical dilemmas feel more meaty than previously.

There are some pretty significant choices to be made, emphasised further by how you approach your need to gobble up spirits. And for the D&D aficionados, there are plenty more epic feats and spells leaping from the pages of the rulebooks.

If only it could have retained its sense of humour, this would be really good stuff. As it is, it's too po-faced too often, and still contains some of the bugs that bothered the original. However, with a tidied toolset and 25 more hours of story, it's still a solid and well-written expansion to an admirable game.
More information.
 
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It just had a different style that not all are bound to like. I found the story very interesting and the companions far from dull. While the original had more humorous dialogues I found that mask of the betrayer had them better written and more interesting. And more expansive of course :D
Torment's characters weren't hilarious yet it worked.

About devour against suppress it does not have much of a significance, as long as you don't use devour often your craving should be fine.
 
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The fact that this game has the 3rd edition DnD settings and starts us at the epic levels keep me away from this game. I bought NWN2 but was pretty disapointed by the adventure, the fighting. Sure, the dialogues redeeems it a lot but by the end of the game, I was glad I was finally done with it. The settings are far more interesting at lower levels where it feels more balanced.

And anyway, right now, I'm busy with «The Witcher» :p
 
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Stay tuned for the official Watch review, coming 'when it's ready'!! :)
 
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Actually, I agree with this review. I'm enjoying MotB (still not quite done with it), but I honestly do feel that it's a bit too dark and gloomy, the companions are dreary, and it could use a little fun/hilarity once in a while. Even though there are clear improvements over NWN2's original campaign (most notably in the linearity department), I can't say I'm actually enjoying it more. Often MotB downright depresses me, especially when Ammon Jerro gives you the news that nearly all of the companions from the original game that you just might have grown a little bit attached to all suffered horrible deaths once you left their presence.

And actually, Torment did have some hilarious characters. Morte's banter with Annah and Nordom is great. One of the myriad reasons that MotB still can't touch it.
 
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Hehe it had some great lines :) I was talking in general though, most of the game was not like that.
 
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