Best dungeon crawler i have played in a long time.
"The problem is that the hardcore folks always want the same thing: 'We want exactly what you gave us before, but it has to be completely different.' -Jesse Schell
"Online gamers are the most ludicrously entitled beings since Caligula made his horse a senator, and at least the horse never said anything stupid." -Luke McKinney
The game's mechanics are acceptable, and one could get used to them. The graphics are beautiful and set the right atmosphere. The money of this game is in the Foundry. Just give us the tools to make something great, and we will. The game industry has long needed a game like NWO.
My opinion is my own. I respect all other opinions and views equally, but keep in mind that my opinion will always be the best for me. That's why it's my opinion.
I enjoyed playing in beta 3 ! Lots of things need addressing,but on the whole its a great game to play I am looking forward to getting stuck in on release
I didn't get to play nearly as much as I wanted this weekend, but I'd put my experience at about a 7 out of 10.
I like the Forgotten Realms quite a bit, and to me that is a huge positive for this game, but the story and hook are really not good IMO. I realize Cryptic is not Bioware, Bethesda, or Obsidian, but it was bad enough to be an actual turn off to me.
Graphically, I was actually switching between this game and GW2 at one point to see what people were complaining about. I run both games maxed out on a 6950. Neverwinter's color palette is not as easy on the eyes, but the level of detail in the environment is actually pretty close in both games. Neverwinter has the previously stated issues with unattractive character models, but they weren't a distraction for me. Where the game is lacking visually is in the vegetation and rocks strewn about in outdoor areas, and the lighting and lack of depth conveyed by the indoor textures IMO. Overall the environments themselves were really pretty good, though IMO.
Combat is going to have the unavoidable comparisons to TERA for those who have played the latter. For me, TERA's combat is significantly more intuitive, flows so much better, and has a collection of enemies with abilities that make them stand out a lot better. I'm also not a big fan of 4e, and while it's not necessarily more restrictive than a lot of MMOs, character building does feel restrictive compared to how I think DnD should be played. That said, I didn't dislike the combat in Neverwinter, and while the game starts off feeling like every character of the same class will be the same, when you get far enough along, opportunities for creating your own playstyle open up quite a bit.
Where the game excels IMO is in providing different ways/reasons to play the game and making them extremely accessible. In that sense, I think the game does/will accomplish some of the significant things it was meant to do. The Foundry itself could keep the game going for a long time. It's not a game I'm going to spend 1000 hours playing every year, but this weekend convinced me to level a character so I can jump in and play some fan-made content every once in awhile.
8/10 for me. Best F2P I've played yet that wasn't P2P at one time. It's simple to learn, the graphics are decent for the most part, voices are pretty bad, and it doesn't try to be something grandiose, it's a multiplayer 3D dungeon crawler that I can play with my friend, who loves it despite hating most MMOs since WoW.
My main issues are combat is amazing on the rogue, but all other classes I didn't care much for.
Sounds like Dragon Age 2.
I gave it a 5 as it stands. It will only go up, being a mmo and giving it time it can still go plenty far up. We'll see how it gets balanced out and then supported.
It isn't ready to be released as it sat BW3. Agro and Healing at the very least are messed up. Fix those and the chest loot issue and there is 2 solid points for sure.
Foundry, until I play something that is really good, then I'll start adding points for that.
I can only think some scores I see here just assumes all the above, well I've lived a little.
I'm not that surprised most people are mostly in the 6-7 range for voting, although I voted a 4.
This is just pretty, instanced garbage.
There's no exploration at all. Everything is an instance. There's tons of scenery you can't interact with, and only one path to do most anything, at least that I've tried so far.
GW2 is FAR better.
As you can already tell, I HATE cookie-cutter theme parks. They are all almost exactly the same. The graphics style looks a bit less cartoony than Warcraft, but still not realistic looking, like I've been waiting for.
I wanted an open world, sandbox-like game. I just jumped into instance after instance.
Hell, I think Raiderz is better than this game.
I'm sick of games where the mobs are in the EXACT same place, every time, just waiting for you to come and kill them, with them endless respawns, back to where they were before, for the next player to come along and kill them.
The dungeons I tried had just one path. Big surprise. Lesser mobs on the way, boss-type mob at the end. Exaclty like 20 other games.
When is someone going to create something new and different, with an open world, and a MUCH less algorithmic. Every game out there now follows the exacly same scripted formula. What every happened to exploration?
I am going to do something a little crazy and actually base my early review off of what the game IS, and not what it is NOT. It is a Dungeons and Dragons game. It has an existing IP.
Combat: Early on seems very limited, I managed to get a character to level 39 since last beta character was not wiped and I noticed that combat was becoming rather deep with far more build options (skills) that can be swapped out before a large battle. I was playing a Wizard. first 15 or so levels it was all basically just control control control. Once past 20 I had spells to use for direct DPS, Crowd DPS and control. Large boss fights I used control to help the group by slowing or stopping him. Groups of weaker mobs I used crowd DPS via AoEs, slightly strong mobs I used direct DPS spells with a slowing spell to take some pain off of the tank and kite one off him.
I did not expect that kind of depth in a D&D game. I give it a 9 out of 10 just for being far better than any other D&D game out there and not trapping the class into a single role.
Quests: Hey look, a story...and one that is better than your typical average MMORPG story as well. I placed the story on par with NeverWinter Nights 1. Some of you may want to take the time to actually READ it...its D&D, its supposed to be story driven. Anyway, Quest variety is your typical MMO standard but focuses more on story directive other than just "Hey we have mouths to feed go kill some boars.
Best part about it, the quests are NOT LIMITED TO WHAT IS MADE BY DEVELOPERS. With the foundry, the quests will be limited by THE PLAYERS. I give this one 10 out of 10 FOR THAT REASON ALONE.
Graphics: Did not expect flashy realistic graphics coming in and was just hoping for something better than average. What I got was a slightly more modern NWN 2 style graphics and I LIKE IT. It fits the D&D setting and takes nothing away from the gameplay.
However, since this one MUST be compared to other games, 5 out of 10. its only that high because it FITS the theme. Maybe more games SHOULD focus on fitting the setting instead of meeting the highest standard. For the "setting" the graphics are more 9 out of 10 and what I wanted out of another Neverwinter game.
Music: I never personally cared about this, there have been more than a few MMORPGs with GREAT music/sounds like Age of Conan for example that despite how great it was....wore off after a while and was replaced by my own music collection. That being said, it still must be compared to what is out there for a rating.
If you take out the...moans from jumping...the sound effects are fairly spot on. Nothing super, nothing generic. The music, well...this is going to come as a shock...I dont REMEMBER it! I actually dont remember ANY music at all because I was too focus on the story, combat and finding bugs. Actually, in all the betas I have been in I only recall remembering the music in SWGs beta. Crazy I know, but its true.
So, I can only give a rating on the sound effects which I would place an 8.
Longevity: Well, the foundry provides an unending amount of content and as long as there are a decent amount of actual D&D fans and others that have played that style of P&P games and even some that just plain have a good imagination, the game can last a very longtime.
Now factor in just how easy it will be for the developers to add new content since every area is basically just an instanced zone that can be tagged on ANYWHERE without making changes to an open world. I really dont see how this game cannot receive new content on a normal basis.
10 out of 10 on this one.
PvP: Going to be honest here folks. the game shouldnt even have it. D&D is not about that kind of gameplay and the only reason why its being placed in game is due to someone saying all MMOs should have it. I didnt even try the PvP, dont care if its as bad as some are saying, but then again, every single game has people saying the PvP sucks, unbalanced, not responsive, unfair and every other complaint imaginable. Even DaoC had in game protests by Hibernia about it and some claim that to be the best PvP game ever.
Not even going to apply a rating, cant, didnt try it nor would I hold it against the game.
UI: I have never given a game a high rating with the UI, not even SWGs which was customizable in many ways because they didnt allow 3rd party mods to make it better. No company will ever make a better UI than the players can in my opinion. So, I give it a 6 out of 10.
In the end, because the most important aspects of the game are high, combat, quests and longevity while the unimportant aspects are low, sound, pvp and UI. I will give the game a rating of 9 out of 10, because it fits what a D&D MMO based on Neverwinter SHOULD be.
A Neverwinter made for fans of the Neverwinter Nights games as it has all the same game concepts worked into an MMO...instead of making a Neverwinter Nights game based on an MMO design nothing like it.
Comments
8/10
Best dungeon crawler i have played in a long time.
"The problem is that the hardcore folks always want the same thing: 'We want exactly what you gave us before, but it has to be completely different.'
-Jesse Schell
"Online gamers are the most ludicrously entitled beings since Caligula made his horse a senator, and at least the horse never said anything stupid."
-Luke McKinney
9/10
Two words: The Foundry.
The game's mechanics are acceptable, and one could get used to them. The graphics are beautiful and set the right atmosphere. The money of this game is in the Foundry. Just give us the tools to make something great, and we will. The game industry has long needed a game like NWO.
My opinion is my own. I respect all other opinions and views equally, but keep in mind that my opinion will always be the best for me. That's why it's my opinion.
7/10
The expirience was very nice. Mostly the game run smooth and without much trouble.
Gameplay itself i find not bad but not with a WHOW thats new factor.
Its a good intertaining game based on Neverwinter. I find its very simular to neverwinter nights but a bit updated.
Liaso
I didn't get to play nearly as much as I wanted this weekend, but I'd put my experience at about a 7 out of 10.
I like the Forgotten Realms quite a bit, and to me that is a huge positive for this game, but the story and hook are really not good IMO. I realize Cryptic is not Bioware, Bethesda, or Obsidian, but it was bad enough to be an actual turn off to me.
Graphically, I was actually switching between this game and GW2 at one point to see what people were complaining about. I run both games maxed out on a 6950. Neverwinter's color palette is not as easy on the eyes, but the level of detail in the environment is actually pretty close in both games. Neverwinter has the previously stated issues with unattractive character models, but they weren't a distraction for me. Where the game is lacking visually is in the vegetation and rocks strewn about in outdoor areas, and the lighting and lack of depth conveyed by the indoor textures IMO. Overall the environments themselves were really pretty good, though IMO.
Combat is going to have the unavoidable comparisons to TERA for those who have played the latter. For me, TERA's combat is significantly more intuitive, flows so much better, and has a collection of enemies with abilities that make them stand out a lot better. I'm also not a big fan of 4e, and while it's not necessarily more restrictive than a lot of MMOs, character building does feel restrictive compared to how I think DnD should be played. That said, I didn't dislike the combat in Neverwinter, and while the game starts off feeling like every character of the same class will be the same, when you get far enough along, opportunities for creating your own playstyle open up quite a bit.
Where the game excels IMO is in providing different ways/reasons to play the game and making them extremely accessible. In that sense, I think the game does/will accomplish some of the significant things it was meant to do. The Foundry itself could keep the game going for a long time. It's not a game I'm going to spend 1000 hours playing every year, but this weekend convinced me to level a character so I can jump in and play some fan-made content every once in awhile.
Sounds like Dragon Age 2.
I gave it a 5 as it stands. It will only go up, being a mmo and giving it time it can still go plenty far up. We'll see how it gets balanced out and then supported.
It isn't ready to be released as it sat BW3. Agro and Healing at the very least are messed up. Fix those and the chest loot issue and there is 2 solid points for sure.
Foundry, until I play something that is really good, then I'll start adding points for that.
I can only think some scores I see here just assumes all the above, well I've lived a little.
I was severely let down by Neverwinter.
I'm not that surprised most people are mostly in the 6-7 range for voting, although I voted a 4.
This is just pretty, instanced garbage.
There's no exploration at all. Everything is an instance. There's tons of scenery you can't interact with, and only one path to do most anything, at least that I've tried so far.
GW2 is FAR better.
As you can already tell, I HATE cookie-cutter theme parks. They are all almost exactly the same. The graphics style looks a bit less cartoony than Warcraft, but still not realistic looking, like I've been waiting for.
I wanted an open world, sandbox-like game. I just jumped into instance after instance.
Hell, I think Raiderz is better than this game.
I'm sick of games where the mobs are in the EXACT same place, every time, just waiting for you to come and kill them, with them endless respawns, back to where they were before, for the next player to come along and kill them.
The dungeons I tried had just one path. Big surprise. Lesser mobs on the way, boss-type mob at the end. Exaclty like 20 other games.
When is someone going to create something new and different, with an open world, and a MUCH less algorithmic. Every game out there now follows the exacly same scripted formula. What every happened to exploration?
I am going to do something a little crazy and actually base my early review off of what the game IS, and not what it is NOT. It is a Dungeons and Dragons game. It has an existing IP.
Combat: Early on seems very limited, I managed to get a character to level 39 since last beta character was not wiped and I noticed that combat was becoming rather deep with far more build options (skills) that can be swapped out before a large battle. I was playing a Wizard. first 15 or so levels it was all basically just control control control. Once past 20 I had spells to use for direct DPS, Crowd DPS and control. Large boss fights I used control to help the group by slowing or stopping him. Groups of weaker mobs I used crowd DPS via AoEs, slightly strong mobs I used direct DPS spells with a slowing spell to take some pain off of the tank and kite one off him.
I did not expect that kind of depth in a D&D game. I give it a 9 out of 10 just for being far better than any other D&D game out there and not trapping the class into a single role.
Quests: Hey look, a story...and one that is better than your typical average MMORPG story as well. I placed the story on par with NeverWinter Nights 1. Some of you may want to take the time to actually READ it...its D&D, its supposed to be story driven. Anyway, Quest variety is your typical MMO standard but focuses more on story directive other than just "Hey we have mouths to feed go kill some boars.
Best part about it, the quests are NOT LIMITED TO WHAT IS MADE BY DEVELOPERS. With the foundry, the quests will be limited by THE PLAYERS. I give this one 10 out of 10 FOR THAT REASON ALONE.
Graphics: Did not expect flashy realistic graphics coming in and was just hoping for something better than average. What I got was a slightly more modern NWN 2 style graphics and I LIKE IT. It fits the D&D setting and takes nothing away from the gameplay.
However, since this one MUST be compared to other games, 5 out of 10. its only that high because it FITS the theme. Maybe more games SHOULD focus on fitting the setting instead of meeting the highest standard. For the "setting" the graphics are more 9 out of 10 and what I wanted out of another Neverwinter game.
Music: I never personally cared about this, there have been more than a few MMORPGs with GREAT music/sounds like Age of Conan for example that despite how great it was....wore off after a while and was replaced by my own music collection. That being said, it still must be compared to what is out there for a rating.
If you take out the...moans from jumping...the sound effects are fairly spot on. Nothing super, nothing generic. The music, well...this is going to come as a shock...I dont REMEMBER it! I actually dont remember ANY music at all because I was too focus on the story, combat and finding bugs. Actually, in all the betas I have been in I only recall remembering the music in SWGs beta. Crazy I know, but its true.
So, I can only give a rating on the sound effects which I would place an 8.
Longevity: Well, the foundry provides an unending amount of content and as long as there are a decent amount of actual D&D fans and others that have played that style of P&P games and even some that just plain have a good imagination, the game can last a very longtime.
Now factor in just how easy it will be for the developers to add new content since every area is basically just an instanced zone that can be tagged on ANYWHERE without making changes to an open world. I really dont see how this game cannot receive new content on a normal basis.
10 out of 10 on this one.
PvP: Going to be honest here folks. the game shouldnt even have it. D&D is not about that kind of gameplay and the only reason why its being placed in game is due to someone saying all MMOs should have it. I didnt even try the PvP, dont care if its as bad as some are saying, but then again, every single game has people saying the PvP sucks, unbalanced, not responsive, unfair and every other complaint imaginable. Even DaoC had in game protests by Hibernia about it and some claim that to be the best PvP game ever.
Not even going to apply a rating, cant, didnt try it nor would I hold it against the game.
UI: I have never given a game a high rating with the UI, not even SWGs which was customizable in many ways because they didnt allow 3rd party mods to make it better. No company will ever make a better UI than the players can in my opinion. So, I give it a 6 out of 10.
In the end, because the most important aspects of the game are high, combat, quests and longevity while the unimportant aspects are low, sound, pvp and UI. I will give the game a rating of 9 out of 10, because it fits what a D&D MMO based on Neverwinter SHOULD be.
A Neverwinter made for fans of the Neverwinter Nights games as it has all the same game concepts worked into an MMO...instead of making a Neverwinter Nights game based on an MMO design nothing like it.