Neverwinter Nights

"Possibly the RPG of 2002"

Introduction:
After 3 years of patient waiting, here it comes. Today, at June 18, 2002, Neverwinter Nights arrived to Israeli stores (well, one store anyway).
Immediately I went out and bought a game that would take a high rank in my most loved games top-list.

Presentation: 9.5/10

The game box is smaller than the usual boxes and takes less space, thus it's more comfortable to store it.
After opening the box the first thing that captured my sight were the 3 CD's. That's right, three. As the game does not use pre-rendered areas like Infinity Engine-based games, this shows that a lot of content is present in the game. The only bad thing about the CD's, is that they came in those paper bags. It's better when they come in the plastic CD-cases, as they are easier to keep then and have a longer lifetime. But, it was probably done to keep the box small.
The next thing I saw was the map. Every game box includes the detailed and colorful cloth map. Not paper map but a cloth map. That means you can put it into a washing machine without fear. The map is very detailed. The familiar surroundings are clearly recognized, and every major, and most of the minor locations are shown.
Then came the heaviest thing in the box - an awesome 200 pages manual. It has a very cool design, and the information is easily located thanks to the index it has at the last 5 or so pages. The information is very thorough and detailed, more detailed than in Baldur's Gate (or at least my biased mind thinks so). Not only people who are new to D&D would be able to start easily and understand the basics and the not-so-basic things, but even for me the manual served as a good refreshment tool. Every feature is described thoroughly. Every single race, class, feat or skill has a long description, detailing the usage, technical info and some background details. The spells get their own part, 30 pages or so. There is even a manual for the World Builder. Also, the more serious D&D players would be satisfied by the tables the manual contains. The guys at Bioware did a very good job.
Half a point was deducted for the paper bags that the CD's come in.

Graphics: 10/10
One word: Gorgeous!
They are the best graphics I ever seen in an RPG, and they surpass most of the current games on the market also. The character is very detailed, and every single item that you equip will be shown on the model. The spell effects are breath-taking and the most beautiful thing: full real-time shadows. And they are not a CPU hog like some other games, on the contrary, my slowly aging system (P3 733, 256 MB ram and a Geforce 2 GTS) can run the game at max details without any burps and pauses in gameplay. The only thing I can't select but very eager to see is the shiny water feature. Most likely it uses pixel-shading techniques...prepare for some real treats.

Sound: 10/10
Even on my system that does not support the treats of EAX and hardware-accelerated sound, the game sounds very good. Every character has his own manner of speaking, be it like madman or a scholar, a raging fighter or a quiet priest.
Casting sounds are very good and the well-known wordings involved are very clear and sound as if you cast the spell yourself. You have to hear it to believe it.
The ambient sounds add to the feeling as well.
Good job!

Music: 10/10
The music is very good. Composed by the same person who did Morrowind music, you expect it to be good...however it turns out to be even better. The music changes accordingly, and matches perfectly the situation you are in.

Gameplay: 10/10
If I could, I would give gameplay even a 20 out of 10. The character creation process is very detailed, allowing you to customize him as you see fit. For the lazier persons out there, there are pre-made skill and feat configurations that target the common builds: a Conjurer, a Diviner, a Generalist and so on. Ingame, the controls are responsive and easy to learn. The ring menu is easy to navigate and remember, and the character can be moved by one of two methods: clicking on the spot (holding your mouse button is useful as well) or using the traditional WASD keys for turning/walking and Q,E for strafing. All controls are fully customizable. The most used feature in the game would be the quickbar. 33 slots for you to fill. That could be items in the first row, spells in the SHIFT row and abilities in the CTRL row.

Final words:
The game could easily be the best RPG of 2002. Making your own campaigns will add to the gameplay, and the strong multiplayer side is also good.

To buy or not to buy: Definitely BUY. If you do not buy it you may easily miss the best game you would ever play. (That is until Bioware releases another D&D game).

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 06/18/02, Updated 06/18/02