I welcomed the announcement of Neverwinter Nights 2: Enhanced Edition like a text from an old partner who broke my heart: I haven’t forgotten, but I’m ready to forgive.
When Neverwinter Nights 2 came out in 2006, I was excited. After getting my introduction to computer role-playing games with Baldur’s Gate 2, which is still the best game I’ve ever played, I eagerly jumped into the “next gen” game, Neverwinter Nights. The experience was mixed: Neverwinter Nights could not recreate the depth and the powerful storytelling of the Baldur’s Gate series, but I still spent countless hours with BioWare’s title, enticed by the 3D graphics, the robust multiplayer options, and by the opportunity of recreating the rules of Dungeons & Dragons 3e (which I was playing on tabletop at the time) in a video game. Neverwinter Nights 2 promised to be “bigger and better,” with enhanced graphics and even more up-to-date D&D rules (3.5e.).
What I found, however, were an awful game camera and a clunky user interface, undermining a main campaign that, while not necessarily worse than the (very lackluster) one from Neverwinter Nights, failed to impress me. Developer Obsidian Entertainment revealed (for example in this video) that publisher Atari forced it to deliver the game early, when there was still a lot of work to be done. This is evident from the two expansions that came out in the following years, Mask of the Betrayer and Storm of Zehir, which smoothed over some of the technical issues of the game and also proved that, if given enough time, Obsidian could deliver good stories and interesting and innovative gameplay. Still, it was too late for me. My heart was broken.
Fast-forward 19 years, and Aspyr announced Neverwinter Nights 2: Enhanced Edition, promising better graphics and audio, more fluid gameplay, improved camera controls, and a revamped UI. It was the text from the ex, promising they got rid of all the bad habits you hated and were ready to start anew. However, just as in real life, bad habits rarely die, and people (and games) seldom change.
The camera is still a nightmare in Neverwinter Nights 2: Enhanced Edition. Unlike in Neverwinter Nights and the Baldur’s Gate series, it doesn’t follow you around properly, and you constantly have to readjust its angle, with the added problem that the controls are way too sensitive. You’ll spend a minute fidgeting to find the right angle, only to have to do it all over again every time you get to the edge of the screen. The “Strategy Mode” option is slightly better (it defaults the camera to a top-down view, but you still have to adjust it as you go.) In my opinion, this option makes the game a lot more playable.
I played Enhanced Edition on PlayStation 5, and the UI also did not make the experience any better. I understand it’s difficult to translate a mouse-based UI to a controller, but Baldur’s Gate 3 handled it effectively. Neverwinter Nights 2: Enhanced Edition has not had the same treatment. Menus are hard to navigate, important information is difficult to find, and there are many unnecessary clicks that make the experience the opposite of smooth. The best example is that whenever you select a character in your party interface by using the X button, you’re not automatically controlling that character. You first have to press the circle button to exit that interface, a completely unnecessary step that frustrated me throughout my playthrough.
Just like the original release of the game, the expansions are a significant improvement over the main campaign. Mask of the Betrayer may be the best in terms of technical improvements and story, while Storm of Zehir wprovides unique gameplay opportunities, with the option to create your entire party, and gameplay focused on exploration and trade.
Neverwinter Nights 2: Enhanced Edition still provides an experience that is very close to playing D&D 3.5 rules in a video game, which was its main attraction at the time. However, it’s hard to think this could be relevant today, with Dungeons & Dragons currently in its 5.5e iteration, which has been translated into a Game of the Year award-winning experience with Baldur’s Gate 3. Nostalgia is a powerful force. However, new players who like D&D in general and may be coming in from Baldur’s Gate 3 should be warned: The rules for 3.5e are very different. There is a level of complexity in building characters that was eliminated in 5e and may discourage you. (I did not miss assigning skill points!)
Neverwinter Nights is not a perfect game, but its popularity was sustained by the amazing Aurora toolset that allowed players to easily create custom modules and that sparked a vibrant and long-lasting multiplayer community. There were countless mods and custom modules, and if you were a DM, you could actually run your D&D games inside Neverwinter Nights. Neverwinter Nights 2 received a mixed reception not just because of the faults in the actual game, but also because its Electron toolset was a lot more difficult to use, discouraging custom content and online play. This Enhanced Edition does very little to fix the issues with the game, but it will be interesting to see if it will revamp its multiplayer community, which is still active despite the official servers shutting down in 2012.
Looking back, Neverwinter Nights 2 was the swansong of the golden decade of D&D-based CRPGs, which began in 1998 with the release of Baldur’s Gate. The game’s Enhanced Edition — unlike those developed by Beamdog for the Baldur’s Gate series — does little to improve or expand the original experience. However, this is still an epic tale of sword and sorcery set in the famous Forgotten Realms. If you missed the chance to play it when it came out, or if you just can’t get enough of D&D games, it’s worth giving Neverwinter Nights 2: Enhanced Edition a chance.
The post Neverwinter Nights 2: Enhanced Edition is good for D&D 3.5e nostalgia, but does little to fix the base game appeared first on Polygon.
