Neverwinter Nights

"Excellent, amazing, ect... why does it get a 4?"

This is easily one of the best picks of the year.. it is almost exactly like 3rd Edition D&D (Dungeons and Dragons) and I am certainly loving it. The graphics are nothing less than incredible, and the spells look especially nifty. I also give them some mad props for their water effects. The gameplay, while it could be sped up a bit, certainly doesn't do the game a great misjustice. Similarly, the plotline could be a bit more interesting, but it isn't terrible. Why then, do I give it a 4 in overall? Because the game has several CRIPPLING bugs.. I'm serious when I say this, it LITERALLY takes me about ten seconds to crash the game and I have to restart my computer. Check your monitor refresh rates! If they're about 1000 then that's PART of it.. but there's more! (That can be fixed).. even after I did so, the game REFUSES to work from time to time (this is one of those times for me) and you simply either cannot play or the crashing is so bad its not worth playing. That having been said, the game, when it works, is the best computer game I've seen for turn-based strategy. I'm a big D&D fan, but I've never REALLY gotten to kill a dragon.. rumor has it that you are saved from a KILLER dragon by a PENGUIN. Yes, those birdies are sick of being made fun of by the other flying birds and are now DANGEROUS.. that's a small example of the humor in this game.. there are many more ;).. so, in recap..

Graphics: A+ (98%)
Base Grade 100
Camera Probs -2
I've never seen better graphics. You can change the camera angles, but sometimes there are camera related problems (easily fixed with only minor delay/annoyance)

Sound: C- (72%)
Base Grade 70
Voices (HSE) 5
Repetitive -3
The sound was completely what i would expect from a D&D game. However, it got a C- as compared to a C because not only was it just not excellent, it got REALLY annoying to hear your henchman say the SAME thing hundreds of times in a row (whenever he picks a lock, for example. It happens a lot) However, this game gets MAD props for the different voice sets (for your character), one of which is ''High Strung Evangelist''- you sound quite a bit like Jesse Jackson.. VERY funny.

Gameplay: I'm split between giving it an A, or an F. When it works, it deserves somewhere between an A- and an A.. the gameplay is excellent, and there is always an evil way to complete quests, a refreshing change from games like Arcanum or Baldurs Gate (I think on BG). It can be annoying to continually cast spells, though, and I as a sorcerer (an improved wizard) had some real problems because many human monsters have 60 hps or so when you're at 4th level (approximately), and even if you emptied your spells into him he might not die. I got a crossbow and a henchman and the problem went away, thankfully enough. Also, the skills could be more useful in general (spot only works against invis things, search finds only traps, for example). This game has a VERY competently made hotkey system in which you can set 36 different actions onto buttons that can be clicked for their effect. Spells, bartering, attack, parry mode, for example. Even special actions, such as an Empowered Fireball (that's a metamagic feated up one) can be placed on the hotkey

Buy?
No. As long as the game does not work (which it does not most of the time) there is no reason to buy it. But if the bugs get fixed, go out for it right then and there. The game is awesome. But the best game is awful if it doesn't work :(

Reviewer's Score: 4/10, Originally Posted: 06/26/02, Updated 06/26/02