NWN2: Mask of the Betrayer

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Mem

Mem

Lifer
Apr 23, 2000
21,476
13
81
Looks like its gone Gold :) .


NWN2: MOTB GOLD! [ 5 Comments ]
Print News
I spent the day at the Obsidian offices getting a presentation of the NWN2 expansion pack, Mask of the Betrayer, and one of the best pieces of news is that it's GONE GOLD both in Europe and the US! The ship date for the game will be late September for Europe and Oct. 9th for North America. The game is looking really polished and frankly with over 25 hours of gameplay and all the content they're delivering, it's going way above the standard of what expansions usually deliver. The storyline with its twists of "eating souls" really should be a great gameplay experience.

I got a chance to also meet with the team from Rogue Dao Studios who are doing The Planescape Trilogy, a NWN2 custom mod, which was really incredible in scope and quality. Also at the event were the Hall of Fame creators from The Robinson Workshop, who have a great knowledge about everything in the toolset. It was also great to meet Kalia from NWN2 Warcry in person who was also covering the event with some of the more mainstream gaming sites. I know I owe you guys a writeup from E3 so I'll make sure I do my best to cover the event properly but I wanted to share the news about MotB going gold before I head back home.
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Link.
 
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Acanthus

Lifer
Aug 28, 2001
19,915
2
76
ostif.org
the NWN OC was fantastic, however they dropped the ball on the dev tools.

It takes more than 5x as much time to develop an area on the NWN2 editor vs the NWN Aurora editor.

The 3rd party developers made NWN great to me, not the 15 hour campaigns they release once a year.
 
Fenixgoon

Fenixgoon

Lifer
Jun 30, 2003
33,620
13,315
136
Originally posted by: Acanthus
the NWN OC was fantastic, however they dropped the ball on the dev tools.

It takes more than 5x as much time to develop an area on the NWN2 editor vs the NWN Aurora editor.

The 3rd party developers made NWN great to me, not the 15 hour campaigns they release once a year.
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NWN OC great? :laugh:

sorry but i hated it. i can't believe i managed to beat it 3 times without attempting suicide. HOTU and NWN2 were 10000000x better :p
 
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EvilComputer92

Golden Member
Aug 25, 2004
1,316
0
0
I actually enjoyed the NWN OC, I know I'm in the minority here. But I enjoyed HotU much more, but the OC was pretty good. Perhaps it was because it was the first RPG I've played. I've got around 100 hours in Oblivion and some of the story driven mods for it are great. I'm thinking of getting NWN2, but I'm kinda shying away from it due to it's high system requirements, and it's bugs.
 
Bateluer

Bateluer

Lifer
Jun 23, 2001
27,730
8
0
Originally posted by: EvilComputer92
but I'm kinda shying away from it due to it's high system requirements, and it's bugs.
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No reason for that any more. The patches have fixed many bugs and optimized the game considerably. The 1.07 Beta patch also optimizes the game even more, increasing performance further, as well as leading into the MotB expansion.

Odds are, I will be picking up MotB after the 15th of Oct. That will give enough time for me to see whether any show stopping bugs are present, and to get an additional paycheck in my accounts.
 
Mem

Mem

Lifer
Apr 23, 2000
21,476
13
81
Originally posted by: EvilComputer92
How would it run on a 7800gt at 1280x1024? Is SecuRom still a problem?
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Should not be a problem, I can run NWN2,Stalker,Bioshock,Oblivion etc at 1680x1050 res with my 7800gt card by tweaking the in game graphic settings.
 
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EvilComputer92

Golden Member
Aug 25, 2004
1,316
0
0
So what's the general campaign like? Does it have some of the same characters from the NWN OC? Is it more party based or more solo play? Is the story decent? In which I'm comparing it to Deus Ex, which IMO has the best story of any game ever.
 
Mem

Mem

Lifer
Apr 23, 2000
21,476
13
81
Originally posted by: EvilComputer92
So what's the general campaign like? Does it have some of the same characters from the NWN OC? Is it more party based or more solo play? Is the story decent? In which I'm comparing it to Deus Ex, which IMO has the best story of any game ever.
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FAQs here .

Mask of the Betrayer begins almost immediately after the ending of NWN2. You will play your same character (if you wish), continuing his or her story. (Your weapons and gold are gone, but you?ll have many of your other equipped items still.) Players who have gone through the NWN2 campaign will recognize some references that occur in NX1.

The story in Mask of the Betrayer isn't about saving the world. It's an epic story, but it's a very personal one. You awaken in a pool of your own blood. Your immediate goal is survival. The shard of the Sword of Gith has been ripped from your chest and in its place is a dark hunger, a craving that threatens to consume you. The early part of the game involves determining the source and implications of this craving.
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14.2.25 How will the expansion start?

The very first companion that you obtain in the expansion will be a neutral Red Wizard that will act as your introduction to the world, and you'll also be visiting sections of Thay in your travels. You'll find her right at the start of the expansion content, which sees your character recovering from the events at the end of Neverwinter Nights 2, where you and your party were trapped underground in the aftermath of a giant earthquake. Waking up in a cave, with the silver shard that existed inside your chest having been unceremoniously ripped out, you're left disoriented and confused, with none of your previous companions by your side. Unfortunately, it appears that few, if any, of them will reappear as a party member, although we're told that some of them will come back in cameo appearances. You'll still have companions in the expansion, of course, but you'll be drawing on an entirely new set of potential friends.
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Dethfrumbelo

Golden Member
Nov 16, 2004
1,499
0
0
Unfortunately, NWN2 doesn't even come close to the level of either PS:T or Deus Ex. I doubt MotB will see much of an improvement. NWN2 feels like a console adventure game.
 
Mem

Mem

Lifer
Apr 23, 2000
21,476
13
81
Originally posted by: Dethfrumbelo
Unfortunately, NWN2 doesn't even come close to the level of either PS:T or Deus Ex. I doubt MotB will see much of an improvement. NWN2 feels like a console adventure game.
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Personally I'm expecting it to be like NWN2 but with less bugs,better camera system etc...if it improves in those areas,then I can forgive the storyline to a certain point.

They don't make storylines like Planescape Torment nowadays ,I doubt we'll see a game with equal or better storyline for years to come.
 
Schadenfroh

Schadenfroh

Elite Member
Mar 8, 2003
38,416
4
0
Originally posted by: Dethfrumbelo
Unfortunately, NWN2 doesn't even come close to the level of either PS:T or Deus Ex. I doubt MotB will see much of an improvement. NWN2 feels like a console adventure game.
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Well, the dev team can focus more so on the single player campaign now that the engine works properly. NWN2 had a much better feel to it than KoToR as far as the UI is concerned.

Look at how much better the NWN1 expansion packs were than the OC.
I doubt we'll see a game with equal or better storyline for years to come.
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We will be fortunate if we get cRPGs that are not Oblivion or Diablo clones. I do have high hopes for Dragon Age.
 
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EvilComputer92

Golden Member
Aug 25, 2004
1,316
0
0
For some reason I've only recently gotten into fantasy typed RPGs, even though I generally dislike fantasy games. That's why I liked Deus Ex so much, because it was in a semi futuristic world, rather then your typical knightish/magish RPG. That's also why I'm so excited for Mass Effect.
 
Mem

Mem

Lifer
Apr 23, 2000
21,476
13
81
NWN 2 WarCry: Visit to Obsidian


The first hour flew by though there was a short discussion of Mask of the Betrayer with Kevin Saunders and Feargus Urquhart. Here's a bit of what Saunders and Urquhart had to say and a teaser for the next installment:

* MotB is the most polished game Obsidian has produced
* MotB was finished early to allow for extra time to bug-fix and to attain a higher level of polish
* MotB features 25-30 hours of gameplay
* MotB has more choices to make in the story giving it a less linear feel
* MotB camera modes allow players to be right IN the world, not just over it
* MotB allows players to experience the world by being close up and personal
* MotB allows for strategy mode to facilitate larger battles and strategic fights
* MotB allows for marquee selection of party members
* Locations
* PrCs
* Chants and spell effects
* In short: MORE, MORE and MUCH MORE!
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I hope so :).
 
D

DaveSimmons

Elite Member
Aug 12, 2001
40,730
670
126
Originally posted by: EvilComputer92
For some reason I've only recently gotten into fantasy typed RPGs, even though I generally dislike fantasy games. That's why I liked Deus Ex so much, because it was in a semi futuristic world, rather then your typical knightish/magish RPG. That's also why I'm so excited for Mass Effect.
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Some other suggestions:
Fallout 1, 2 & Tactics ($15 at GoGamer, also available via GaemTap?)
Star Wars: KOTOR 1 & 2 -- best on a PC since you can crank up the resolution
XenoSaga (PS2) -- at least it's fun so far, I'm in the middle of it now

 
Mem

Mem

Lifer
Apr 23, 2000
21,476
13
81
YouGamers Preview .

According to Obsidian, content for the expansion pack has been finished since early June. Since then, the bulk of development time has been spent on bug-fixing and polishing. Hopefully, this extra attention to detail will prove worthwhile in the finished product, as NWN 2 received some barbs for lackluster performance and bugs at release. The graphical improvements are welcome, but fans are no doubt looking forward to the new character classes and races. With more of the Forbidden Realms open for exploration, and a promise to add more closure to the NWN storyline, Mask of the Betrayer is shaping up to be a must-have for NWN fans.
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QuantumPion

QuantumPion

Diamond Member
Jun 27, 2005
6,010
1
76
I bought NWN2 a while ago but I haven't gotten around to playing it yet. If I buy the expansion, will I be able to play the original campaign with all the new features the expansion brings?
 
Schadenfroh

Schadenfroh

Elite Member
Mar 8, 2003
38,416
4
0
Originally posted by: QuantumPion
I bought NWN2 a while ago but I haven't gotten around to playing it yet. If I buy the expansion, will I be able to play the original campaign with all the new features the expansion brings?
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You will be able to use the features available in the 1.07 patch for NWN2, the final of which will probably be released along side MOTB.
 
Mem

Mem

Lifer
Apr 23, 2000
21,476
13
81
Received my retail version today,comes with one DVD disc and manual about 82 pages,installing as I type this ,so will give you a game update later.
 
Bateluer

Bateluer

Lifer
Jun 23, 2001
27,730
8
0
Originally posted by: Mem
Received my retail version today,comes with one DVD disc and manual about 82 pages,installing as I type this ,so will give you a game update later.
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How'd you get it so early?
 
Mem

Mem

Lifer
Apr 23, 2000
21,476
13
81
Originally posted by: Bateluer
Originally posted by: Mem
Received my retail version today,comes with one DVD disc and manual about 82 pages,installing as I type this ,so will give you a game update later.
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How'd you get it so early?
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Quite simple,I'm in UK so we get it today 28th Sept and also mine was pre-ordered online from GAME UK :).
 
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