Neverwinter - Two Reasons To Try Neverwinter

Couchpotato

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Forbes has a small editorial that gives us two reasons why we should play Neverwinter. I guess they couldn't find more than two.
The Homepage/Landing Page
It’s a simple concept, but it makes a big difference. With modern shifts in MMORPGs moving toward being able to find a group immediately and get right into an adventure beyond grinding or questing, the landing page gives players an excellent overview of what options they have at any given time.
Have around 10 minutes? Queue up for a skirmish. Have more time and want to go on a dungeon crawl with a group? Option is right there. Looking for a solo experience? Find an interesting quest to participate in. All of the day’s special events and popular Foundry quests are also available for perusal. It’s a great way to answer that quintessential MMORPG question of “What am I going to do today?” and provides a plethora of options that encompass play styles from casual to core.
The Foundry
We had a chance to see the Foundry at work and were impressed by the concept, but how does it really hold up? While we didn’t have a chance to get to run anything truly epic in scope during closed beta, the experiences that were available in Foundry play were every bit the equivalent to traditional questing and in most cases far more interesting.
Players are able to sort Foundry content by popularity and a number of other factors as well as leave ratings and reviews. The good stuff does rise to the top, and the system allows players to create multi-tiered adventures and quests that players can dive right into and completely eschew the “standard” game content if they so desire.
A single 20 minute Foundry quest had me taking on bandits in bar, driders in the darkness, and unraveling mysteries surrounding a cat. The Foundry lets players wield developer tools to craft content, and once the game enters open beta there’s no doubt that talented and dedicated mapmakers will be putting their skills to work.
More information.
 
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I want to try it, but account registration from Russia is disabled for no apparent reason:

"Disabled Region:
Our sincerest apologies, we cannot provide service to players in your region."

I contacted support, but their reply was "We just can't, duh!"
This regional discrimination is very annoying.
 
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Just about everything about this game seems wrong to me. And I'm saying that as a long-time fan of both D&D and especially the FR setting. Mostly, of course, WotC is to blame, who not only botched the 4th Ed., but went on to completely destroy what a huge community of writers and designers - and fans - had built up lore-wise on Faerûn for three decades.
Not that a game bearing a sacred name like this but appearing to be just another bland, superficial, soulless grinder is helping, mind. The editor might have been nice if tacked onto a decent game, though...

Anyways, why is the Watch reporting on this at all? I thought you had a clear policy on MMO games?
 
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Anyways, why is the Watch reporting on this at all? I thought you had a clear policy on MMO games?

Since I started doing the news and according to the poll posted in the forums. I will only cover a couple. You will still get mostly singleplayer game coverage, but I will throw in an occasionally mmo one.
 
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For a minute I thought he was talking about nwn-1 and for the life of me I couldn't figure out what the 'foundry' was since i never heard of it before :(
 
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For a minute I thought he was talking about nwn-1 and for the life of me I couldn't figure out what the 'foundry' was since i never heard of it before :(
Well that's what we have Original Sin for. I can't wait to get my hands on the editor.
 
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As I understand it, the Neverwinter Foundry is less a traditional DIY toolset (like those found with NWN, TES, and-hopefully-Original Sin) and more a set of pre-fab building blocks that can be used to build standard fedex-type quests that align smoothly with the overall MMO environment. So, less modding and more basic customization of what's already there.

If someone has more info on that, I'd like to hear it, but that's my basic understanding.

Obviously I'm waiting more on Original Sin, especially with the final stretch goal made for NPC schedules and day-night cycles, scripting shortcuts that are VERY useful for us modder types.
 
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Agreed, Todd. That was my biggest problem with the game in the gameplay videos I watched. I hope the NPCs give you better directions or there is another system to use instead of the magic trail pointing you exactly to your destination.
 
As I understand it, the Neverwinter Foundry is less a traditional DIY toolset (like those found with NWN, TES, and-hopefully-Original Sin) and more a set of pre-fab building blocks that can be used to build standard fedex-type quests that align smoothly with the overall MMO environment. So, less modding and more basic customization of what's already there.

If someone has more info on that, I'd like to hear it, but that's my basic understanding.

You can make all sort of quests in the Foundry. I've seen investigation quests, arena fighting and simpler stuff in beta. You can even make campaigns (chained quests) and your own maps with buildings, NPCs, mobs and caves (but players need a quest to access them). The only limitations are that you can't import new models, add stuff that isn't supported by the game or cause exploits (i.e. XP/rewards level are based on your character level).

The stuff I tried in beta was similar to some of the modules I played in NW1&2.

Can you get rid of that quest guide line thing? That is a huge turnoff.

Z key (it's a toggle on/off).
 
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I played the beta for Neverwinter and thought it was pretty good and definitely not a grind game. I played one of the foundry modules and it was really well done and probably some of the best content I have played in an mmorpg. The issues I did find with the game are mostly because of WOTC and the I think the good outweigh the negative. I would say it has potential to be better then DDO especially with the Foundry modules. I didn't get to play that much so it is still not my final opinion on the game but we can all try it out next week.
 
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The foundry is pretty powerful but it does have some annoying exploiting related limitations you didn't have in Neverwinter Nights. You can't place treasure chests or change the stats of individual monsters or design custom items for rewards, for example.

Overall, the game is very good. Best free mmo I've played. Check it out if you're into action rpgs.
 
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what kills me is that WotC went through all the pain and bad rep to transform D&D into the suckness that is D&D 4ed to make it more like a World of Warcraft simulator, and then the first 4ed game that comes out is an action game.
 
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As being the Turkish localization manager of Neverwinter, I have tried the closed beta. I install and play MMOs to analyze and understand the game for translation. And generally this process is boring for me. Because as a gamer I prefer single player RPGs, MMOs are not my thing.

But this time it was different. When I sat in front of my computer I played Neverwinter 6 hours nonstop. First this is not a NWN game, so players who want to play Black Isle style RPGs must look elsewhere. It's an action RPG, so if you like Diablo, Kingdom of Amalur kind of games you will most likely love this game.

Story revolves around Neverwinter. After the spellplague Neverwinter city was devastated and now overwhelmed with lots of problems. All manner of beasts and groups are trying to take hold of the city and you, as an adventurer, seek to eliminate these threats. This story reminds me somewhat Pool of Radiance. But since Neverwinter is an MMO, your actions do not make radical changes to the city.

Quests are standard fetch and kill tasks. But combats are really fun. Each character has a different playstyle which is a plus. Game was divided into zones. Each zone consists of a main area and several instances. You can see other players in the main area and monsters constantly respawn there. But in instances there's no respawn which is a plus. Each of the zone has unique architecture, monsters, etc. You can easily play the game solo. No need to gather a group to advance in the story.

Best part of the game is it's free. So install and play it, then decide for yourself.
 
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To be honest while I have not played NwN beta (MMO is not my thing); I have read positive things from NWN beta on many sites where people are quick to gripe (esp about pay to win). No clue if the full release will live up to the beta; and no clue how this compares to guildwars (I tried guild wars 1 and could never get into it). So while MMO is not my thing and I'll probably not play NWN (though if i get bored i might give it a try) I want to be fair given what I've read to date.
 
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Just hearing that it follows the 4th edition rules is enough to keep me away. I would have thought that maybe they'd stick with 3rd edition and try to attract the people that played NWN in the 90's, but I guess not. Oh well, EQ2 is still the best current mmo by far, imo.


-Carn
 
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They probably can't since they had to get the license from WOTC to use D&D and The Forgotten Realms so they determine what rules they can use. I expect Neverwinter to get better after open beta starts since there will be even more people making modules and that is the most important part of the game from what I have seen.
 
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I have actually been enjoying the beta - got in a few hours as a 'Control Wizard' last night (on the 30th all I managed was to download, install, and see a huge queue ...). I find it to be solid - some things I like better than Star Wars The Old Republic, others not as much.

I am not a MMO guy, so I tend to solo regardless, and know I won't be around forever, but it is a decent fantasy action-RPG based on my experience so far.
 
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I don't get it. Why an action game? Who is the target audience? I like d&d 4e and the forgotten realms but not much of an action game fan. Do the powers from 4e exist in this game? I would think the target audience would be table top rpg'ers so why make an action game?
 
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