Neverwinter Nights The True Diamond at NWVault

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According to the recent editorial at NWVault, Neverwinter Nights is the true diamond that awaits every RPG player willing to look and see beyond the mist of common misconceptions. Here is an excerpt:

The Official Campaigns and the Toolkit

One of the biggest misconceptions tied with Neverwinter Nights is just what the package is - many feel it was an official campaign with a toolkit attached to it. It was however quite the opposite - it was a toolkit with an official campaign attached to it. This was the source of much dismay on release since Bioware made a huge gamble - NWN would on release have a toolkit that the community had not quite embraced and an official campaign that may not satisfy - would gamers realise that NWN would mature like the finest of wines? The answer is that it seems not, but if the true RPG fan would look in their wine cellar to the changes that have occurred in this bottle, they will most likely never look at another cRPG again. Years on, the toolset has been perfected, mastered and the talented members of the community have created stories and worlds that would make BioWare themselves proud.

A few people argue that Neverwinter Nights should be judged straight out of the box and the community creations is not part of the package - but is that truly fair? BioWare put all of their time and effort into a toolkit to allow the community to create countless experiences so in truth it is a part of the ‘NWN experience’. After all whenever you will play any of these creations, it is the Neverwinter Nights symbol that you will see flash first. But what has been created with this toolset?

That's quite smart: change your expectations to accommodate what you get and you'll be happy. On the other hand, though, the good points brought about in favour of NWN are real and have been appreciated by those players who have made the effort to look around for modules and persistent worlds. In short, with NWN, you get what you make of it. The rest of the article is at NWVault.

 

I have to say that I agree with them.

I am relatively new to NWN and when I first installed and played it, I was quite disappointed with the product per se.

When I got broadband and could play online, I experienced modules and worlds created by others, and my conception of the game changed. I truly enjoy playing with other people who are really into role-playing, and this gives a new dimension to the game and the way it can be enjoyed, even when playing the OC.

I have even started fiddling with the Toolset, and I must say that it is quite addictive, even though the most I've ever done has been a big room with a library attached.

 

I would say, to a degree, that's a fair assesment. I'm not sure that was exactly what Bioware intended when they released the game, but the actual hits and misses brought up are accurate enough. The OC was an official miss. While some parts were quite detailed, and not likely to be replicated except by people with a real passion (if you've ever looked at the large amout of dialog, you'll see what I mean), but overall it was quite bland.

With years of experience now, the community more than has the talent and resources to make exceptional product. Custom content, detail, design, scripting, and overall quality of product are quite high in many pw's and modules. Many such worlds and modules have been evolving now ever since the game was released. I would urge anyone who gave up on nwn early in its life cyle to give it another try.

My own suggestion would be give Soul Forge a try if you're looking for a fun action packed pw with attention to detail, lots to do, and a friendly player base. But even if you didn't try that one, there are others out there worth looking into. NWN may be an aging game, but the quality of the game does continue to grow.