Neverwinter Nights 2

[vultureX21]

I got NWN2 on DVD-ROM for real cheap and was very excited, I even used the extra money to purchase Mask of the Betrayer since it looked like the most comprehensive expansion of all those available. I was very eager to install and get adventuring, recalling Baldur's Gate's amazing experience.

Here is the list of issues I encountered thus far:

Installation took at least five hours because I was supposed to install the original game, install the expansion, then update. I did this wrong multiple times, not understanding why it wouldn't patch for me. I only happened on the correct sequence via the Obsidian forums (more on that later). Even after I found the right order of installation and patching I still had to hunt down a manual patch because the built in patch program actually prevents ITSELF from patching after a certain update.

Oh well, problem averted, solved, or whatever. Now I should easily be able to run an older game on a newer computer right? Wrong.

I had to drop all shadow enhancement, lower screen resolution, and basically bring it all down to simple graphics settings so it didn't move so jerkily that it looked like I was playing on an Apple II. How is this possible? The game doesn't even have serious visual effects like Oblivion or Fallout 3 that can run on my computer! Ridiculous! Clearly this is a case of a poorly designed engine.

Then I finally get to the actual game, using great 3.5 edition rules and featuring real role-playing (not Baldur's Gate level storytelling, but being able to initiate conversations with your party and having a persistent home base to meet with everyone is very cool). Nearing the end of the first act I can say I now like most of the characters and the plot is pretty good, but there are still these crazy stupid moments like:

Spoiler

At one point a rock slide blocks your progress and you have to blow up the rocks to move on. In a nearby cave there is a box of grenade like items, some stable and others unstable. After a LENGTHY dialogue tree that makes it VERY CLEAR you should be wary of even touching the unstable ones it turns out to remove the rocks you HAVE TO HAVE THE UNSTABLE EXPLOSIVES. Seriously. This is an embarrassingly bad moment in the game, hopefully it is isolated.

What really gets me though is in referring to the forums for the information I needed to install and make the game run (which still has to be started, task manager process canceled, then started again to work) there were people like me voicing, often politely, how absurd these errors were. They pointed out that the developers should have found and fixed all these inexcusable errors. The response from most of the moderators and few devs who participated? Suck it up. They either made the complaining person sound like they were being a nitpicker, spoiled, or unreasonable for being mad about all the hoops they have to jump through.

So I ask, especially for those who have played NWN2 and know what I am talking about, don't you find the bugs and issues with this game and the attitude of its creators is deplorable? Any similar stories of frustration?

DISCLAIMER - Given that I did a lot of bitching about this experience I do want to say that the game is good and enjoyable, assuming my gripe with that one moment doesn't rear its head again.

 

[Lazy Kitty]

Well, I did play NWN2, but I can't remember having any problems with it...

 

[Volstag9]

i remember getting NWN2 last year for my birthday. It was fun at some spots and much worse at others. Finally i gave up and last Christmas i got the original NWN (for some reason got 2 before 1) and i must say the original is far better. I haven't looked back since.

 

[More Fun To Compute]

Mask of the Betrayer might make up for some of your frustration.

I remember the part with the demolition of the rocks and there are other parts in the campaign that were not so good. One problem with the single player is that it has a very large amount of content for a modern game and the quality control is not there for a lot of it. There are good parts in it.

I imagine that the people on the forums are sick to their back teeth of hearing about bugs, performance and installation issues as the forums were a shit storm from day 1. Some, frankly, obnoxious NWN1 fans like to hang around the NWN2 community and make a stink just to let everybody know how much they hate the game.

 

[DazZ.]

I couldn't run NWN2 on my computer either, even though it is more than capable. Made me defiantly enjoy the game less, I gave it up after I encountered a mob that was invincible. Was good whilst it lasted for me though.

 

[roekenny]

Single player on nwn1 and 2 are bad, you need to get on-line and find a PW you like as where game shines. Never played nw2 as Obsidian have ruined every series they touch but game community should be the same. For pnp style campaigns look to neverwinter connections and sign up to a campaign. If want PW look about a bit but recommend low/ mild magic worlds and avoid any server what when enter billboard after billboard of rules, keep it simple and bio hazy till get to know the place.

Oh and avoid playing paladins as harder than think as everyone hates a snooty do gooder

 

[vultureX21]

Mask of the Betrayer might make up for some of your frustration.

I remember the part with the demolition of the rocks and there are other parts in the campaign that were not so good. One problem with the single player is that it has a very large amount of content for a modern game and the quality control is not there for a lot of it. There are good parts in it.

I imagine that the people on the forums are sick to their back teeth of hearing about bugs, performance and installation issues as the forums were a shit storm from day 1. Some, frankly, obnoxious NWN1 fans like to hang around the NWN2 community and make a stink just to let everybody know how much they hate the game.

That's actually pretty amusing about the forums. I wanted to get into the original but it never did it for me, I picked up NWN2 in the hopes of enjoying the party dynamic that made Baldur's Gate so mind-blowing.

 

[vultureX21]

Single player on nwn1 and 2 are bad, you need to get on-line and find a PW you like as where game shines. Never played nw2 as Obsidian have ruined every series they touch but game community should be the same. For pnp style campaigns look to neverwinter connections and sign up to a campaign. If want PW look about a bit but recommend low/ mild magic worlds and avoid any server what when enter billboard after billboard of rules, keep it simple and bio hazy till get to know the place.

Oh and avoid playing paladins as harder than think as everyone hates a snooty do gooder

Not to worry about Paladins, I play rangers. Building him into a Ranger/Weapon Master I hope (only level 8).

 

[Kiutu]

NWN2 was big about being too much for most comps, which is why I never got it despite loving the first so much. Get the first by the way if you havent, even though updates will take a good chunk of time.

 

[More Fun To Compute]

That's actually pretty amusing about the forums. I wanted to get into the original but it never did it for me, I picked up NWN2 in the hopes of enjoying the party dynamic that made Baldur's Gate so mind-blowing.

There are some good party members in NWN2 but nothing that stands out as much as the best in BG2 and PS:T. The length of the game does mean that you do get some of the relationship building feeling that you get in BG2.

Mask of the Betrayer has better writing and pacing but the party dynamic is different again.

 

[Canadamus Prime]

That's funny, I have NWN2 and I didn't have any of those problems on mine.

 

[TheSupremeForce]

Well, you can't expect to get insight into NWN2 from any of its dev's, since BioWare hosts the NWN2 forums despite the fact that they didn't develop the game (Obsidian did). Unfortunately, that leads to a lot of people bashing BioWare for problems with a game they weren't responsible for making.

NWN2 never really captured my enthusiasm in the same way that NWN managed to do, but that's mostly due to multiplayer NWN2 being an almost total flop. As a single player game, NWN2 was worthwhile. I didn't really enjoy the official campaign all that much (it was "average" in the same way that NWN's OC was average), but Mask of the Betrayer was a lot of fun.

 

[Grayl]

I'm not really a fan of the D&D rules, but I did enjoy NWN1.

NWN2 just bored me, really easily. The game is extremely poorly optimized with graphics that don't even add up to Oblivion, as you said, OP. But I could barely make it past the first tutorial part, because the game was so slow and buggy.

That and it just bored me. I know they're restricted by the D&D rule-set, but I think in this day and age, most gamers find the slow combat quite boring. In your first few levels you just literally tell your character to attack, if he's a Fighter, and then just sit back and watch. And when I got abilities, they failed so often that it felt like I wasn't even playing the game!

It's a very confusing game, too, with lots of things that I don't understand in it. Creating a character was very difficult, and it's like you have to have read the D&D rulebook to even start playing the game. I didn't really like the characters, either (yes, that is including the Dwarf monk guy!) although the plot seemed quite good.

I found the game boring, confusing and un-optimized. I never had the problems you had, OP, but I still didn't enjoy it. Maybe I'm getting bored of RPGs... or maybe they're getting more boring. I'd love to know which one it is.

 

[CmdrGoob]

I played NWN2 and the camera gave me the shits until I found the right options to get the best camera position.

Other than that it was good, not great. Some entertaining writing and characters got me through it and storywise it was better than NWN1 but there was still a bit too much of the standard fantasy boilerplate and the D&D 3.5 rules aren't that great for a game; a bit too complex and fiddly (eg I had like 10+ buff spell I had to cast after every time I rested!).

MOTB, on the otherhand had such a great story it was well worth it.

 

[vultureX21]

MOTB, on the otherhand had such a great story it was well worth it.

I am excited to get to that game, have to complete the OC first though, don't want to ignore it.