NeverWinter Nights (Preview)

Details: Category: Computer; By CCGR; 01.Jun; Hits: 7680

System Requirements

OS: Windows 98/Me/2000/XP CPU: Pentium 450Mhz RAM: 98/ME 96MB, Windows 2000/XP 128MB HDD: 1.2 GB VIDEO: 16MB TNT2 class SOUND: 16 bit Direct X certified Age: Teen

This game is based off of the famous dice rolling RPG Dungeons and Dragons. I have no experience with D & D RPG\'s so I\'m not sure how true to the books this game is. I will admit that it is quite fun and every attack you make is based on dice rolling. Besides attacking you\'ll be doing some exploring and finding many valuable treasures and companions along the way.

How do I start?

You begin the game by creating your character. You must choose your gender ,look, race and class. From there you can edit your attributes and add specialties. To make things easier there are some template ability packages you can use.

What race do I choose?

Each race has their own special abilities. The human race is pretty neutral and can adapt to anything. Dwarfs are good warriors and resistant to magic. Elves are good magic users. Gnomes are good tinkerers. Half Elfs have the best of the human and elf world. Half Orcs have orc strength with human intelligence. Finally, Halflings are nimble little beings. Each class has special abilities and many have a favored class.

Classes

* Barbarian * Bard * Cleric * Druid * Fighter * Monk * Paladin * Ranger * Rogue * Sorcerer * Wizard

How do I increase my attributes?

When you first create your character you assign attributes. During game play and fighting you will gain experience and level up. When you level up you can increase you attributes and add special abilities. There is one catch though. This game has something called alignment. Remember that class you chose? Your character must follow through with it in order to level up. For example if you\'re a Paladin (holy knight) you must be a good character. If not you won\'t be able to level up your Paladin skills.

What\'s the story?

Thee demo begins with you being invited by Aribeth the Paladin of Tyr to train in her army. This is a great honor and you get to go through the boot camp training and talk with people along the way. By talking with people you will learn how to use the game\'s interface and controls. There\'s a horrible plague going around called the Wailing Death. There are rumors about a possible cure. However upon graduation, that hope may be lost as the training area is invaded. You are ordered by Aribeth to protect the creatures used for the cure. You will get to fight many baddies including skeletons, goblins and mages.

Appropriate?

From a Christian perspective this game has violence. You will definitely have to kill various monsters. The character art is very nice in this game. Unfortunately some of the female artwork can be a little sensual and putting on more clothes would be nice. There is some bad language in the game. Magic use is prevalent. There are many different religions and deities in this game. In fact when creating your character you can specify your god(s). Although the demo did not have any bad symbols, I hear the full version does. The full version also has blaspheming and brothels from what I hear.

Overall experienceEase of use

This game is easy to install and play. To move around you use the WASD keys and the mouse to look. There are many different camera angles you can use. (there are tutorials to show them all to you.) The world is very detailed, objects that you can manipulate will glow when you put your cursor over it. There are many secrets, don\'t be afraid to explore! The sound effects and background music were excellent. There wasn\'t much voice acting. Except for your character. The AI was pretty decent, you can give orders to your party like attack nearest etc. The game was very stable and I had no problems running it. It Alt-Tabs nicely. The full version appears to have patches and add-ons available. The full version will have Multiplayer support where you can design the levels and scenarios. There will be many levels and adventures in the single player campaign as well. The demo is over 300MB and doesn\'t offer much game play but it sure is fun. As fun as it may be, I would still be hesitant on buying it.