NeverWinter Nights Game Review For the October 2015 Fornax
NeverWinter Nights(NWN) was originally a snappy little game that
was developed by SSI and hosted by America Online (AOL) during the years 1991-1997.
It was the first multiplayer online game with graphics. Up to 500
players in a single game could interact in a persistent fantasy world. Every day when you logged in, you could
find some new development that affected the economic, military or political
landscape. Guilds of players rose and fell. There were Quests created
by the staff and players fought to the death. The game grew and
eventually there were numerous games of NWN being played
simultaneously totaling 115,000 players.And then, all of a sudden
and without warning, AOL shut down the game in 1997
However, while AOL failed to see the game's promise, others were
not so blind. BioWare (BW) acquired the rights to the game and in
2002 brought out a new NWN game. This was a game that could accommodate an
unlimited number of players in a single game. From a purely commercial standpoint, the new NWN
has been a success spawning many sequels.
However, while it has been a commercial success, in the eyes of
many gamers, it is just another example of a game that sets its priority on
great graphics aka "eye candy" instead of great game play. Instead of
improving the game, BW has instead made the graphics engine the
center of its advertising.
The combat system in the BW version of NWN was all screwed up.
You could use either weapons or potions but not both simultaneously.
Unlike previous games, you could only have one henchman to assist you.
Later on, BW added on the option of having a pet.
Although the BW version of NWN was a disappointment for those who
had played the original, for the great majority of players who had never
tried the original before, NWN was a pretty decent game.
Bottom Line: While the BW version of NWN does have its strong
points, it just simply does not measure up to the AOL original. This makes it
all the more unfortunate that AOL chose to ditch the original.
