Review MotB review at IGN - 8.5

[Vault Dweller]

Tags: Neverwinter Nights 2; Obsidian Entertainment

<a href=http://www.ign.com>IGN</a> has posted a very positive <a href=http://pc.ign.com/articles/827/827626p1.html>Mask of the Betrayer review</a>, giving the game 8.5.
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<blockquote><u>Instead of tromping through the standard fantasy fields and forests of the Sword Coast, the expansion brings you to Rashemen, a spirit-infested land where witches and Red Wizards maintain order and shadow portals open the way to demons and gods.</u> To keep with this ghostly theme and reinforce the driving force of the narrative, your character is burdened with a spirit meter, a mechanic which essentially keeps you on the move and forces you to be much more selective about when to rest your party. Through the meter you do gain a few neat abilities with more unlocking as things progress, but ultimately the meter felt more like an unnecessary nuisance than a well-integrated gameplay feature. You'll figure out how to deal with it eventually, but throughout the game it remains an annoyance.
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Meter issues aside, you'll find Mask of the Betrayer's narrative to be well done overall. <u>You don't spend loads of time dungeon crawling mostly because there aren't that many huge dungeons to crawl around in. Most combat areas are smaller and feature fewer enemies than you might expect with a game like this, keeping the focus on plot and character development</u>. A notable exception is the Academy, which requires a surprising amount of problem solving skills to complete. It can be an enjoyable diversion, featuring a number of side-quests to absorb your time like a golem boxing match. It really jumps out of nowhere, however, and slows down the game's otherwise high-tempo progression. It isn't really a problem, just unexpected. When you do head out into the field to fight, expect some challenging resistance, as many foes in the game will easily shred an improperly buffed party.</blockquote>I underlined the reasons why I liked the game so much.
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Thanks, Kthan

 

[Admiral Rimjob POOBUM]

You'll figure out how to deal with it eventually

An hour after getting it, when you head to Ashenwood, is "eventually"? Okay then.

 

[fastpunk]

I underlined the reasons why I liked the game so much.

Liked? So you're done with it. Lookin forward to that review! :wink:

 

[Zomg]

Not having quite so much trash combat as NWN2 is not a confidence-building quality.

 

[Volourn]

8.5 is about where I'd rate the game. However, I kinda disagree with the 'small dungeons' things. Thus far, I've been in 3 dungeon like areas, and 2 of them reasonably large. The best thing about the combat though is it's nowhere as easy as the NWN2 OC. Not super hard; but definitely makes you think even more. Then again, I decided to play a W/RD/ASOC.

 

[Kortalh]

I played a 7 Ranger/13 Rogue through the OC, but accidentally lost the save when I uninstalled. When I started the expansion campaign, I made a pure Rogue. With only a Wizard companion and a very limited supply of health potions, combat was almost offputtingly tough. Lots of reloading. I wound up restarting with a Barbarian instead, which has made combat a lot more balanced.

I've only had two complaints with it so far... The spell effects when you have 3 casters with you become downright obnoxious. It's next to impossible to see what's going on, even when it's paused. The simple solution, of course, is to disable AI spellcasting -- which makes the combat more fun, so it's hardly a complaint. :wink:

My real complaint, though, is the Spirit Meter's alignment adjustments. My Barbarian is Neutral Good, with a tendency toward Chaotic. Being Good, however, means I don't want to devour souls. But using Supress gives you +2 Lawful every time you use it. Despite doing all the Chaotic stuff I could, I still wound up being too Lawful to advance as a Barbarian.

I can understand how someone could argue that it's a Lawful action -- you're refusing to sacrifice other people to save your own skin. But the opposite isn't only Chaotic, it's downright Evil. Slaughtering hundreds of Ghost-Dogs just so that I can live a few days longer? That sounds like any number of Disney villains.

That aside, I'm definitely loving the game so far.

 

[Helton]

Does "Eternal Rest" give you lawful points?

 

[Kortalh]

I don't remember. But it only works on Undead Spirits. Vampires, Skeletons, Mummies, and the like are immune. Only Ghosts and Shadows work, which aren't nearly common enough to make it a survival method. Heck, just regular Spirits can be hard enough to find sometimes.

 

[Helton]

I don't remember. But it only works on Undead Spirits. Vampires, Skeletons, Mummies, and the like are immune. Only Ghosts and Shadows work, which aren't nearly common enough to make it a survival method. Heck, just regular Spirits can be hard enough to find sometimes.

If you pop into shadow mulsanteer(sp) there's plenty of undead shit to "Eternal Rest". That's how I stayed topped off. Just try sleeping in the temple and you usually get attacked by something, or leave some urns unlooted and use the spirits that spawn from those.

 

[Jasede]

That's metagaming. D:

 

[Helton]

That's metagaming. D:

Yeah and the spirit-meter encourages it. I don't dislike the idea or the game but the implementation was off, so fark it.

 

[Kortalh]

Same here. I honestly think it's a really cool idea, especially the way that it makes resting something that you never want to do, without feeling like some sort of tacked-on mechanic.

If anyone's interested, I found a mod that removes the alignment element to the Spirit Eater abilities:
http://nwvault.ign.com/View.php?view=NW ... ail&id=165

The nice thing about it is that you can pick and choose which ones make alignment changes. I took it off from Suppress, but left it on for everything else -- I hate cheating in RPGs, but whatcha gonna do?

 

[Saber-Scorpion]

That settles it - I'm getting this game today. I enjoyed NWN2 on the first play, but discovered upon trying to play it again that it has basically zero replay value... This one sounds far more promising.

I'm glad to hear the game discourages using the ridiculous cop-out of simply sitting on your ass for a few seconds to become fully healed again after a battle. Thanks for that mod link though - it sounds like I may end up using that. I'd hate being labeled Lawful just because I'm not Evil... but it seems to happen a lot in these types of games.

 

[Oarfish]

Its easy enough as a rogue if you get epic precision - available at level 21 if you have crippling strike. It means you get stealth attacks on anything and can easily dish out 100HP a round of damage with dual wield.

 

[Fresh]

Huh Codex approves of this game?

 

[Claw]

Fancy that.

 

[elander_]

It's probably because there is nothing better to aprove in the recent years.

 

[roshan]

This whole MOTB thing just shows that the codex is just as vulnerable to hype as any other site.

 

[Jasede]

Dunno. How do you deduce that, roshan? So far, all I read is people who played the game saying it was good.

 

[Vault Dweller]

This whole MOTB thing just shows that the codex is just as vulnerable to hype as any other site.

What hype?

 

[Starwars]

Indeed.

Surely there are many games which can be blamed for hype, but MotB? The biggest piece of hype there was for it is probably the Atari factsheet that mentioned PS:T, to which I think people might've been pleased but also very skeptical.
And in the end, I thought it was actually a valid reference because while I don't feel PS:T and MotB are not on the same level, they definetely have similiarities.

Other than that, I can't recall there being much hype.

 

[Futile Rhetoric]

This whole MOTB thing just shows that the codex is just as vulnerable to hype as any other site.

What hype? Whose hype? You mean the legitimate reactions of the people who have actually played the game, and were, if anything, pleasantly surprised? Do you understand the meaning of the word "hype"?

 

[cardtrick]

Do you understand the meaning of the word "hype"?

hype: /haɪp/ [hahyp] –noun
1. a hypodermic needle.
2. a drug addict, esp. one who uses a hypodermic needle.

 

[roshan]

The way I see it, people are starved for RPGs, and that has led to MOTB being overrated. The Codex has basically created its own hype and gotten carried away with it.

MOTB is a good game, unlike the NWN2 OC, but I definitely do not think it deserves to be compared to games like Torment.

 

[cardtrick]

The way I see it, people are starved for RPGs, and that has led to MOTB being overrated. The Codex has basically created its own hype and gotten carried away with it.

MOTB is a good game, unlike the NWN2 OC, but I definitely do not think it deserves to be compared to games like Torment.

We're a web forum. It doesn't even make sense for us to have been able to make our own needle. STFU NOOB.

(It's amazing how the uselessness of my posts increases in direct proportion to the amount of work I have to do.)