Game News NWN2: Mask of the Betrayer announced

[Vault Dweller]

Tags: Neverwinter Nights 2; Obsidian Entertainment

<a href=http://nwn2forums.bioware.com/forums/viewtopic.html?topic=559062&forum=109>What the title said</a>:
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<blockquote>ATARI ANNOUNCES NEVERWINTER NIGHTS â„¢ 2: MASK OF THE BETRAYER
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Expansion to Neverwinter Nights 2 Features Engrossing New Campaign; Epic Levels; New Companions and Much More
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NEW YORK – April 12, 2006 – Atari, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATAR), one of the world’s most recognized brands and a third-party video game publisher, today announced the development of the next chapter in the Neverwinter Nights saga – Neverwinter Nights™ 2: Mask of the Betrayer. Developed by Obsidian Entertainment, the expansion to the award-winning Neverwinter Nights 2 is set in the DUNGEONS & DRAGONS® Forgotten Realms® universe created by Wizards of the Coast, a subsidiary of Hasbro, Inc. (NYSE: HAS). DUNGEONS & DRAGONS is under license from HPG, the licensing division of Hasbro. Neverwinter Nights™ 2: Mask of the Betrayer will be available in North America in Fall 2007.
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In Neverwinter Nights 2: Mask of the Betrayer, players are transported back to the Forgotten Realms shortly after the events detailed in the original Neverwinter Nights 2. Following the climactic battle against the King of Shadows, the player awakens alone and stranded deep beneath the earth. Surrounded by a horde of evil spirits, the player embarks on an epic adventure that reveals his true destiny.
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“Atari’s commitment to the Neverwinter Nights franchise and the enormous community is strong,” said Nique Fajors, Vice President, Sales, Marketing, Atari, Inc. “We are on track to release the Neverwinter Nights 2 expansion pack this Fall, less than one year since the launch of Obsidian’s outstanding sequel, and are confident the new features will deliver a role-playing experience that further engages and satisfies fans.”
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Set in harsh, spirit-rich Rashemen, near the powerful nation of Thay, Neverwinter Nights 2: Mask of the Betrayer will present players with an exciting new campaign; epic levels; dozens of new feats and spells; new races, base classes and prestige classes; new companions; new weapons, armor and crafting options; hordes of new monsters; and enhanced modding tools.
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“Neverwinter Nights 2: Mask of the Betrayer’s engrossing campaign will conclude the storyline that began in the original Neverwinter Nights 2 and focus on combat, exploration and classic D&D dungeon-crawling,” said Feargus Urquhart, CEO, Obsidian Entertainment. “We’re also making new advances in story and character development as well as improving upon the acclaimed companion Influence System used in both Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic 2: The Sith Lords and Neverwinter Nights 2.”
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The Neverwinter Nights franchise has sold more than three million copies worldwide, is translated into 10 languages, sold in more than 40 countries and features one of the largest and most active fan communities in all of gaming. To date, fans of the franchise, which includes Neverwinter Nights, Neverwinter Nights: Shadows of Undrentideâ„¢ Neverwinter Nights: Hordes of the Underdarkâ„¢ and Neverwinter Nights 2 have created more than 5,000 modifications to the original game using the award-winning toolset included with the full game that allows players to create their own universes, quests and storylines.
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Neverwinter Nights 2: Mask of the Betrayer is scheduled for release in Fall 2007. More information about Neverwinter Nights 2 can be found at www.nwn2.com, which includes user forums, project news, development updates and more.</blockquote>More levels, spells, loot, and monsters. What's not to like?
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Thanks, serch

 

[bozia2012]

I hope they will fix the game.

 

[Sir_Brennus]

What's not to like?

Meh, I'm unimpressed with the idea of that expansion.

Goodbye Planewalking adventure, goodbye outsiders, goodbye worthy PST followup.

I'll buy it anyway and hold my hopes up for Purgatorio...

 

[Ladonna]

Surrounded by a horde of evil spirits, the player embarks on an epic adventure that reveals his true destiny.

So killing the shadowlord was just a prelude. Now your TRUE destiny will arrive....won't that destroy any reason for a third instalment? Maybe this first true destiny will be false.....

classic D&D dungeon-crawling

Orc Dungeon crawling?

 

[taxacaria]

Mask of the Betrayer will present players with an exciting new campaign; epic levels; dozens of new feats and spells; new races, base classes and prestige classes; new companions; new weapons, armor and crafting options; hordes of new monsters; and enhanced modding tools.

I don't like the idea of lots of "additional base and prestige classes". Imo there are enough of them in NWN2 already. New companions aren't really surprising. btw - I'm not a friend of beeing forced to accept unliked companions to get a chance to beat monsters. New weapons and armor to beat the hordes of new monsters? Hack&slash at it's best. Crafting options could be somewhat interesting. Enhanced modding tools are nice for modders, but I'd prefer intelligent quests, unlinear gameplay and an improved combat system.

 

[Micmu]

Surrounded by a horde of evil spirits

NEXT !

 

[Texas Red]

Yay! Im actually looking forward to it. This is good news. Although I fear for the quality since the release date is so close. Hopefully Atari isnt just pushing everything out the door to meet the holiday sales.

They shouldnt add more prestige classes. The ones available are only implented half the way. They should instead fix that. Give Assassins and Blackguards proper spellbooks and such.

 

[KazikluBey]

Surrounded by a horde of evil spirits, the player embarks on an epic adventure that reveals his true destiny.

So killing the shadowlord was just a prelude. Now your TRUE destiny will arrive....won't that destroy any reason for a third instalment? Maybe this first true destiny will be false.....

Neverwinter Nights 2: Mask of the Betrayer’s engrossing campaign will conclude the storyline that began in the original Neverwinter Nights 2 (...)

Selective reading much? Looks like the NWN2 storyline will indeed not require a trilogy.

Anyway, there's not much to say about the press release, standard expansion pack "more of the same" fare. Yay.

 

[taxacaria]

Selective reading much? Looks like the NWN2 storyline will indeed not require a trilogy.

It's only the first part of the epic NWN cycle. And this first part is only the prelude for the beginning of the first of the central parts, and each part will have at least 5 expansions. So there will be much more hordes of monsters and uninvited companions in the future.

 

[Cthulhugoat]

OH NOES THE GOD OF MURDAR

 

[Volourn]

LONG LIVE NWN SERIES!

 

[suibhne]

Following the climactic battle against the King of Shadows, the player awakens alone and stranded deep beneath the earth. Surrounded by a horde of evil spirits, the player embarks on an epic adventure that reveals his true destiny.

...sigh.

 

[kingcomrade]

His true destiny to find the Four Armlets of the Elements (Earth, Wind, Water, and Heart) and use them to defeat The Giant Fanged Cockraptor.

 

[Edward_R_Murrow]

Epic Levels

At this point, power gamers are going wild.

Surrounded by a horde of evil spirits, the player embarks on an epic adventure that reveals his true destiny.

I like EXTREME better...

Set in harsh, spirit-rich Rashemen, near the powerful nation of Thay

If there are not massive references to Minsc or Edwin I'd be quite surprised.

exciting new campaign

If you love to kill stuff and be the Forgotton Realms Fed-Ex man.

epic levels

Here they are again....

dozens of new feats and spells; new races, base classes and prestige classes; new companions; new weapons, armor and crafting options; hordes of new monsters; and enhanced modding tools.

Basically a bunch of cool stuff for the toolset along with some excrement of a campaign.

and focus on combat, exploration and classic D&D dungeon-crawling

Where's my choice and consequence?

using the award-winning toolset included with the full game that allows players to create their own universes, quests and storylines....

...so the developers don't have to!

 

[Top Hat]

LONG LIVE NWN SERIES!

DIDN'T YOU CLAIM NWN2 WAS DEAD ROOFLES?

 

[Roqua]

I played NWN2 for as long as could bear on the hardest level and it still was so easy I couldn't stand it. Doesn't it make sense to make the hardest setting hard? Why would anyone play such an easy, mindless game? Why play a game that is 95% combat when the combat is hands-off, no thinking, stupid easy. I thought nwn and Kotor was as easy as it got, but nwn2 takes the easy cake. I knew I wouldn't like this game but I still bought it to give some money to a company that at least still has character generation and stats before those aspects are streamlined out, and since the retarded game media reviews slammed it for having stats or something. Why didn't anyone mention the combat made for retarded ADD kids? You figure bthat would be addressed before anything else.

 

[Jasede]

You can't possibly tell me there's a game out there that's easier than any of the KOTORs.

 

[Fez]

Bulletball.

 

[kingcomrade]

:D

 

[Zomg]

Your destiny is to write out the feats you are going to pick for your twenty epic levels, slightly permuted, over and over during your freshman chemistry class while you try not to unconsciously wank to the bare shoulders of the Indian girl in front of you.

 

[kingcomrade]

Another comrade who appreciates a fine set of shoulders

 

[Texas Red]

The forums were filled with complaints regarding the difficulty. The patch should have given all of the monsters an increase to their stats. But apparently the guys at the PR(a softer word for cheating people) are in the opinion that this is how it should be. Of course this is so wrong and just stupid on so many levels.

 

[Greatatlantic]

So... no fun on the Planes? Dang, thats pretty much what I was looking forward to in the inevitable expansion pack. I just hope anything still on Faerun is just a prelude to someplace fun and bizarre.

 

[Jim Kata]

The hardness depends.

I did not find it super easy if you played in a 'normal' manner, but yes if you lure monsters one at a time it is indeed very easy. It's also much harder if you play with a character that is not an ubergod cleric/fighter.

Basically what difficulty there is, though, is created by the retardedness of the user interface, though this is apparently being improved.

I had a lot of difficulty with some parts when playing with an unintentionally slightly gimped cleric.

 

[Pegultagol]

Not much excitement on the multiplayer front? There are a myriad problems that may or may not still persist now disguised as a 'feature'.

What is the status of that black dog mod, maybe it should come bundled with it.