So far I enjoy it but not in the same way I enjoy DDO. I find it lacks in build choices and stat rolling totally sucks and is an illusion at present since it's an array type thing. They need to tweak some things and maybe make soloing a little more challenging.
Still it's only beta and hopefully they will listen and address some of our concerns, one thing to keep in mind is not to compare it to other DnD game we have played as these Vindictus type games are just different.
I will play this game and DDO but which one I will play will depend on my mood that day. Neverwinter will be for when I have less time or don't want to think as much and DDO will be more for raids where you need a larger group and pay attention not to cause a wipe.
atrophiedMember, Neverwinter Beta Users, Neverwinter Guardian UsersPosts: 7Arc User
edited February 2013
Okay, time for me to reply to the original OP: First with the background story and then, with my experiences from this Beta weekend.
The very first DnD computer game I ever played was DarkSun, AD&D and if anyone remembers it, was a rather good game but bit of a prequel for its successor title, Wake of the Ravager which I never got to play. Had everything everyone wanted. Except graphics. 8bit style ftw!
This game left a lasting impression of fantasy role-playing on the mind of a seven year old that, twenty one years later still remains.
I think I've played almost every D&D related pc game since, and I've played (with lordeeto) 3rd, 3.5 and (without lordeeto) 4th edition D&D on PnP.
I buy games worth $60 or $70 on a monthly basis, finish them within days of purchasing and then hold onto them for sentimental value. I don't get too involved in the hype sensationalism of games - I know that they're being made by other people, and I doubt any of them are clever enough to read my mind.
If I spend $60 on a game and play it over the weekend, finish with it but had a good time, I consider that $60 well spent...
So here's what I did and didn't like about this weekend.
Pros:
a) Combat, everyone has mentioned it, is very dynamic. I ran the Cloaktower as a Guardian with two clerics and two rogues, took out top kills, top damage dealt and top damage received, even came third in healing! If your paying attention, combat gives you a lot of fun and can reward you as well.
b) The quest motifs appear to be well conceived, it's not just kill the same old thing for the same old reasons. There is a variety in the cast. Pirates, undead, gnolls, etc.
c) The graphics are surprisingly not as bad as I had feared.
d) I found very few game breaking bugs. (Only three which were game breaking. Cloaktower, Clock Tomb and a crash for having my profile open and right clicking portrait to actually inspect myself as well)
e) Companions and mounts do appear to be well designed (and my horse seemed large and sturdy enough to actually carry a full plated armoured behemoth of a man)
How about some Cons?
a) No voice acting. Whether this is just because it's beta, I can't tell you. But I think that this might be a large contributor to players feeling unfulfilled with their quests. There is no urgency or humanity tying you to what your doing.
b) Leveling: It feels too fast, a bit too easy. Go to point a, do your quest, gain a level, finish the quest, start quest at point b, gain a level. I think the fun of the game is sustainable enough to drag levels out a bit, make us work for them more.
c) A lack of complexity in quests. The Clock Tomb (if anyone else got it done) actually made you think for one brief shining second. It had a riddle. A single, riddle. And this gave me high hopes that complexity is something the devs were waiting to confirm was missing.
d) The lack of all races and classes being made available for open beta? Nit picky I know, but I wanted to play a GWF.
Did it live up to my expectation? Yes. I came in here expecting that the $60 I spent was going to be used up in this weekend and come next beta weekend I wouldn't be looking forward to anything that has changed or been added... But I am. I'm hopeful that next weekend I can play another class, as another race (Drow or Dragonborn). I'm hopeful that they add voice acting, even a little. I'm hoping they tweak some of the text and make some of the quests require more brain then brawn. I'm hoping they slow down the pace of the game and add a bit of content in between levels to even balance the games combat with.
This isn't the D&D I grew up loving. This isn't PnP.
What this is, is Cryptics take on Neverwinter and FR, with some familiarity that kindles fond memories but gameplay that doesn't require anyone to have them to enjoy it. That is something that meets my expectations.
Never forget, that at this early stage of the pre-beta we tested if the core game works or not. It does! Mounts work, companions work, quests work, all is well.
Now comes the finetuning. The levelling speed was rather fast, but it only shows a very rough estimate of what it'll be in the future. More mounts, companions, quests, animations, sounds, voice acting (I actually did hear some), etc. etc... I am curious how much (and I expect MUCH) will change between weekend 1 and 2.
The difference between a crude water glass and a champagne glass is in the detail. Both fulfill their function perfectly, but the champagne glass is more refined. And that is what's gonna happen to NWO in the near future.
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gobleanMember, Neverwinter Beta UsersPosts: 0Arc User
edited February 2013
Concerns I have from watching gameplay videos are:
No Classes released: I know they and others keep using the word, but what I have seen are Paragon Paths released. If these are premade characters to start things off, then I have less issue with it.
No Feats: Again I know I saw a tab with the word feat, but there were no feats in it. There was only another skill/enhancement tree.
Console like controls: I push a button and it does a dramatic animation, but I did nothing to do that fancy high-flying, spinning thing that ended in an explosion other than hit one button.
Feel free to explain if you have seen otherwise in the actual gameplay. Using the words it is only beta are not encouraging, in my experience things only go downhill from actual betas which I am not sure this is. As in, things keep getting cut due to time constraints.
From what I have seen the folks who just can't let go of 3.5 or who wants an exact representation of the D&D rule set are going to be the ones who have the most problems here, and honestly no matter how much screaming is done on the forums, Cryptic isn't going to re-code the game, but the good news is it's a very niche group that demands those things.
I think the game is going to do very well people in the beta this weekend (was blown away at how many there were) seem mostly happy, and I only saw one "OMGz0Rz refund!!"
Okay, time for me to reply to the original OP: First with the background story and then, with my experiences from this Beta weekend.
The very first DnD computer game I ever played was DarkSun, AD&D and if anyone remembers it, was a rather good game but bit of a prequel for its successor title, Wake of the Ravager which I never got to play. Had everything everyone wanted. Except graphics. 8bit style ftw!
This game left a lasting impression of fantasy role-playing on the mind of a seven year old that, twenty one years later still remains.
I think I've played almost every D&D related pc game since, and I've played (with lordeeto) 3rd, 3.5 and (without lordeeto) 4th edition D&D on PnP.
I buy games worth $60 or $70 on a monthly basis, finish them within days of purchasing and then hold onto them for sentimental value. I don't get too involved in the hype sensationalism of games - I know that they're being made by other people, and I doubt any of them are clever enough to read my mind.
If I spend $60 on a game and play it over the weekend, finish with it but had a good time, I consider that $60 well spent...
So here's what I did and didn't like about this weekend.
Pros:
a) Combat, everyone has mentioned it, is very dynamic. I ran the Cloaktower as a Guardian with two clerics and two rogues, took out top kills, top damage dealt and top damage received, even came third in healing! If your paying attention, combat gives you a lot of fun and can reward you as well.
b) The quest motifs appear to be well conceived, it's not just kill the same old thing for the same old reasons. There is a variety in the cast. Pirates, undead, gnolls, etc.
c) The graphics are surprisingly not as bad as I had feared.
d) I found very few game breaking bugs. (Only three which were game breaking. Cloaktower, Clock Tomb and a crash for having my profile open and right clicking portrait to actually inspect myself as well)
e) Companions and mounts do appear to be well designed (and my horse seemed large and sturdy enough to actually carry a full plated armoured behemoth of a man)
How about some Cons?
a) No voice acting. Whether this is just because it's beta, I can't tell you. But I think that this might be a large contributor to players feeling unfulfilled with their quests. There is no urgency or humanity tying you to what your doing.
b) Leveling: It feels too fast, a bit too easy. Go to point a, do your quest, gain a level, finish the quest, start quest at point b, gain a level. I think the fun of the game is sustainable enough to drag levels out a bit, make us work for them more.
c) A lack of complexity in quests. The Clock Tomb (if anyone else got it done) actually made you think for one brief shining second. It had a riddle. A single, riddle. And this gave me high hopes that complexity is something the devs were waiting to confirm was missing.
d) The lack of all races and classes being made available for open beta? Nit picky I know, but I wanted to play a GWF.
Did it live up to my expectation? Yes. I came in here expecting that the $60 I spent was going to be used up in this weekend and come next beta weekend I wouldn't be looking forward to anything that has changed or been added... But I am. I'm hopeful that next weekend I can play another class, as another race (Drow or Dragonborn). I'm hopeful that they add voice acting, even a little. I'm hoping they tweak some of the text and make some of the quests require more brain then brawn. I'm hoping they slow down the pace of the game and add a bit of content in between levels to even balance the games combat with.
This isn't the D&D I grew up loving. This isn't PnP.
What this is, is Cryptics take on Neverwinter and FR, with some familiarity that kindles fond memories but gameplay that doesn't require anyone to have them to enjoy it. That is something that meets my expectations.
Well said...oh and there is voice acting, not much and people with certain sound cards are having issues hearing it, but what's there is well done.
Always Looking for mature laidback players/rpers for Dungeon Delves!
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phytobardMember, Neverwinter Beta Users, Neverwinter Guardian UsersPosts: 8Arc User
edited February 2013
I would prefer more roleplaying and space to think - I'm not into slash and hack type games (I play DDO and also played AD&D with tabletop/pen and paper which I think is great because you have time to think). This seems so far to be about soloing around and blasting everything in sight which for me is a disappointment. I like storyline, interaction and not just bam bam bam at everything that moves with a red line above it. I find that you cannot toggle off the mouse unless you use the alt button which then goes into the interface and would prefer to use arrow keys to WSAD etc. I would like proper storylines - I guess this is a test.
Saying that, there are some good features and if you think of your payment as "crowd funding" the project then it makes sense.
D&D Online has much, much more real D&D things in it. Classes, depth in character customization, spells, etc.
Neverwinter is more of an action RPG where you spam skills and everyone can pretty much solo and its like hack and slash through everything with ease as a group.
I still think it can be very fun, its just not using much real D&D stuff IMO.
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phytobardMember, Neverwinter Beta Users, Neverwinter Guardian UsersPosts: 8Arc User
edited February 2013
Oh I hope creating your own class comes into it. So far I feel I will stick with DDO - yes there are some issues but overall I feel that I like the playability and the storylines and interactions better (especially with other players). I like multiclassing.
I find my cleric in Neverwinter is just a bam bam bam kind of flat character. All I can do is lob spells around, and nothing else.
Yeah I have to agree completely. I was disappointed that the Cleric gimping on spells and variety will be the foreshadow of the other spell classes, just various power spamming of the same thing. Artillery cannons to be sure. DDO is well thought out, though I despise the graphics and their leveling system (I know its similar to pnp) but I like to feel I am making progress other than a single blue dot.
StarWars for me has had the best interactive NPC quest system yet, I love the voice overs/acting though the characters classes have limitations. But I digress, for me I was hoping for a bit of GW2 mixed with DDO for this. And the multi-classing is a BIG deal for me, I like creating completely unique characters like Champions Online and DDO give. The game play was fun, attractive and I enjoyed the little things in detail visually. Hope there is more to come in the other Betas as well as the final release, though at this point I have my doubts they will make any significant changes to the Spell class. Anyone know if there is going to be a Warlock?
THIS IS A BETA!!!!! You seen, or maybe played a portion of an unfinished game in it's infancy. "Do you understand the beta that's coming outta my mouth?"
He is right tho. Every press video coming out makes the game look like tera/gw2 clone, the real feel of D&D is not there, The basic format has just been hammered to bits... Going in with 5 classes and the 8 standard races one of which you need to pay 200$ for. There is three times the class BASE in DDO..... This is like 2 generations down from that and while other games will be pumping out 12-15 classes in new mmos over the next 2 years we are sitting here with the ENTIRE 4.0 Advanced class list being ignored. Why? Is what we are asking. WHY have they taken the D&D 4.0 background and chopped it down to D&D 1.0...
It is a step backwards.
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phytobardMember, Neverwinter Beta Users, Neverwinter Guardian UsersPosts: 8Arc User
edited February 2013
Ooh forgot - I do like the character design bit. On DDO you cannot design the body - you can design the face and hair but no more than that. I like the fact with this you can choose arm length, body size etc - I hope this is kept in.
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duerdalMember, Neverwinter Beta Users, Neverwinter Guardian UsersPosts: 11Arc User
edited February 2013
I'm surprisingly impressed from what I've seen so far, money well spent. Just want to play release now.
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castagyreMember, Neverwinter Beta Users, Neverwinter Guardian UsersPosts: 4Arc User
edited February 2013
It does not feel like D&D to me. It's also a bit difficult for me to play with the default set up given the damage to my right hand and arm. I think it will be a fun game, though, and very playable once more of the rough spots are smoothed out. Especially the foundry, that seems much better than similar systems I have seen in other MMOs to date.
Remembering Hanlon's Razor can save one a lot on aspirines.
It does not feel like D&D to me. It's also a bit difficult for me to play with the default set up given the damage to my right hand and arm. I think it will be a fun game, though, and very playable once more of the rough spots are smoothed out. Especially the foundry, that seems much better than similar systems I have seen in other MMOs to date.
Hey mate, I've had helped a few people out with injuries, there are a few things that can help you out with that. For mainly left hand play see Steelseries keyboard as it does 100% more then your standard keyboard the other thing you can do is set up a joystick for mouse integration there are a few tricks for setting that up online if you google that. I got that set up for a vet who could not use most of his right arm. PM me if you need help.
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robbievwMember, Neverwinter Beta Users, Neverwinter Hero UsersPosts: 0Arc User
edited February 2013
You guys know this is a D&D Themed MMO and not actually D&D right?
There is not way to have a MMO coded to allow everything my players have ever attempted in D&D.
Such as using porridge in a trap to surprise an enemy.
And if you want more riddles and less hacking then I am sure you will find it in later user created content. Just remember to rate it and donate it so the author will know to make more like it.
I see great potential in a game that allows it's players to expand on a basic concept.
As an RPGA member and long time Dungeon Master I know that the true greatness of D&D (Any version of D&D) is that the PLAYERS are the ones who make it great.
"As the size of an explosion increases, the number of social situations it is incapable of solving approaches zero."
You guys know this is a D&D Themed MMO and not actually D&D right?
There is not way to have a MMO coded to allow everything my players have ever attempted in D&D.
Such as using porridge in a trap to surprise an enemy.
And if you want more riddles and less hacking then I am sure you will find it in later user created content. Just remember to rate it and donate it so the author will know to make more like it.
I see great potential in a game that allows it's players to expand on a basic concept.
As an RPGA member and long time Dungeon Master I know that the true greatness of D&D (Any version of D&D) is that the PLAYERS are the ones who make it great.
All true, and I get their "attempt" at trying to make a new more "hip" version of D&D but there are a few holes with that, Like comic book movies none were ACTUALLY good until they started to follow the real stories follow the lore better. The whole avengers swing was not only THEE best multi-movie tie in series ever done but was well made because they finally understood they needed to follow the original concept better and not try to do a x-men 3 "the directors own vision" which is garbage.
There are so many things that needed to be added that were not hard. Races is not a massive undertaking that they seem to be telling us it is. And from what I am seeing in the videos the classes are not that mind blowing that they could not have shortened the cap on the existing games top end and invested MUCH MUCH more into the class field. Take STO, the biggest mistake they made was on release you could go to the biggest and best ship and to admiral in about 12 hours. There was no where to go from there. Same now with Neverwinter.... The level cap is retardedly high for a D&D game as is. classes are minimal and any new direction post launch will just be a bigger joke to the systems roots.
Right now player made content might be the only salvation of the game but sadly without direct dm control this is missing the potential the game could have, So no... I don't think it was that hard to make an actual D&D game instead of having a slightly flavored D&D inspired game. It just spits in the face of anyone that actually likes both NWN AND D&D. Honestly why didn't they just make it after some other part of D&D why did they need to drag the wonderful IP of NWN threw the mud.
I think it's been pretty clear for a long time this wasn't going to be a all out effort to recreate all DnD mechanics. So it is best to just leave labels and names out of it and judge the game, hence it is the mix I mentioned above. Now do you like that or not? To me I am ok with it because I like 3rd Person ARPG's, there aren't a ton yet, but to me it's much more immersive then top down ARPG's.
The classes I think it's ok to say they are giving us in many way pre-made classes. Sort of interesting because past Cryptic efforts they were leading the way in many regards giving you a lot of character choice. My guess it's only 5 at launch because they plan to sell the other characters, they do need income and to me that is a perfect thing to sell. Those are things I would buy and I get it.
Things I would like to see:
1. Higher difficulty. Notice you do hundreds of damage, they do 25. Notice you swing 3 times a second, they swing once every 3 seconds. Too many times green bars on a group barley move downward as they mow down many mobs, that needs some action there to get the blood flowing. (Suggest: Multiple difficulty choices, or auto-scaling dungeons as you beat them)
2. Player scaling/mentoring so it's easier to group up. (Cryptic has been a leader here as well)
3. More active skills. Even just 2 more. (Or active load-outs we can build and swap on the fly)
4. I haven't seen a lot of the open world, I seen some of it, but the game has a lot of corridors in general.
5. Way to turn off all flashy effects around items. ARPG's are adventure lite, at least give us some sense of discovery by not telegraphing everything. Go here! Pick Me Up!
6. Deadly Traps.
7. Animations are a bit stiff.
8. Like the roar the large trolls was it? when you kill them they whale out. They should do that in battle, and it should be an attack skill for them of some sort. More sounds like that during combat can add to immersion. Perhaps a DM Gauntlet style speaking here/there could add a little something to.
No comment on story or presentation.
No comments on the Foundry, don't know enough.
But I'm definitely playing this game and hopefully for a long time. I only mentioned things to improve upon, pretty much all the other things are looking good.
When I found out about this game and saw some of the gameplay videos and screenshots, I got my 200$ ready. But 200$ is a lot for a game so I decided to check the forums before I form an opionion. And that opinion is formed. I will not be paying 200$ for this game (I'm aware I can play it for free). The main thing that changed my mind was the fact that they will not stay loyal to the D&D and honestly that was why I wanted to pay them.
The fact is PW has quite a few MMOs released and almost all are mediocre at best, with the exception of CoH, that being said, I hope lightning strikes twice in the same place and this game is just as good (it should be better all things considered).
But I want to thank the people who posted here, for their honesty especially. I respect the fact that they allow good and bad feedback unlike SWTOR where beta testers that posted bad feedback on the forums had their posts removed of overflooded by fanboiz.
I am sorry PW, I will not be paying 200 $ just to buy a race in a game I may end up uninstalling after a few days.
I am sorry PW, I will not be paying 200 $ just to buy a race in a game I may end up uninstalling after a few days.
I don't think you need to apologize, I don't think they feel that is a requirement. Face it, the $200 is for the whales with either tons of desire or simply deep pockets. I am not buying the $200 offering as the other 99% won't be. I'm still bullish on the game and will be playing. It is FTP, repeat after me... FTP. These founders packs are special offers, nothing more.
I don't think you need to apologize, I don't think they feel that is a requirement. Face it, the $200 is for the whales with either tons of desire or simply deep pockets. I am not buying the $200 offering as the other 99% won't be. I'm still bullish on the game and will be playing. It is FTP, repeat after me... FTP. These founders packs are special offers, nothing more.
It was never about it being free. As I said in my first post, I am aware it's a F2P game and also that I would gladly pay them either by buying a product or simply by donation if they would have made a game in the true spirit of Neverwinter and D&D (Forgotten Realms).
The fact is, this game only uses the NW theme and nothing else. Neverwinter and all the D&D games aren't great because of the story or any other factor. It's because they know how to set up the story using little details. For example, the quest dialogue is simply bad in this game because it does not offer you the feel of a D&D quest and rather just a text very few can be arsed to read. I'm not saying they should do something a'la SWTOR but they could do much better, especially in a game where quests and adventures are so focused upon. Otherwise most people will just skip through the text and follow the glowing path.
But my mind is not dead set that this game is gonna be bad or fail, I simply won't be buying what they are trying to sell at the moment because I'm just not convinced it's worth it.
There has not been a good D&D game for years now (since Mask of the Betrayer). I hope this game changes that, but from what I've seen of the beta myself and from what the people who got to play there say, I'm not betting on it.
There has not been a good D&D game for years now (since Mask of the Betrayer). I hope this game changes that, but from what I've seen of the beta myself and from what the people who got to play there say, I'm not betting on it.
Have you tried: Knights of the Chalice? That is great. That is computer DnD.
When you compare the game to TERA or Guild Wars 2 (and those are the two obvious comparisons) it actually "looks" pretty good. The combat looks like it has some weight and it is faced past and you just basically plow your way through stuff and in less than an hour you are probably going to get some loot.
So for a light, action paced game, it looks pretty decent. The problem is that there is not a whole lot of difference between this game, TERA or GW2. I am trying to find a reason to play this game in stead of those games and it is becoming difficult.
It's not D&D, there is nothing D&D about this game except the setting....of course, my version of D&D is solving problems in a group format not hack n slash your way through a 45 minute dungeon run to get some loot then rinse and repeat for the next run.
The problem is the foundry. You can say that this is a great thing.....but I play STO and there is one, very big thing you have to take into account when playing the foundry. Your content is dependent on other people. So in order for you to have a great foundry experience....someone has to actually make that.
Anyone who has played STO or City of Heroes with it's mission generator knows that the VAST majority of missions are total garbage. You may get one out of 100 that you deem worthy of playing and would recommend to a friend.
The question is this. Will the truly creative people play this game just for the foundry and will they play it longer than 2 months (the usual time you drop a themepark MMO) If those people leave...by by good missions. It is the same way with Skyrim. Morrowind and Oblivion had robust mod communities with thousands of mobs, Skyrim does not. There are some good ones, but those other two games dwarf Skyrim and it is not because Skyrim is newer...a lot of the modders just dont play the game anymore.
If NW lacks staying power, the foundry is in big trouble.
There has not been a good D&D game for years now (since Mask of the Betrayer). I hope this game changes that, but from what I've seen of the beta myself and from what the people who got to play there say, I'm not betting on it.
indy20Member, Neverwinter Beta UsersPosts: 29Arc User
edited February 2013
I've watched a lot of videos looks pretty legit. All the negativity that I've seen has been towards the game not being D&D enough for the table top veterans. But this is Neverwinter to me more than DnD. I've always preferred Forgotten Realms and Neverwinter campaigns than regular DnD like you see in DDO. In regards to Neverwinter and that campaign setting how is it?
Comments
Still it's only beta and hopefully they will listen and address some of our concerns, one thing to keep in mind is not to compare it to other DnD game we have played as these Vindictus type games are just different.
I will play this game and DDO but which one I will play will depend on my mood that day. Neverwinter will be for when I have less time or don't want to think as much and DDO will be more for raids where you need a larger group and pay attention not to cause a wipe.
Neverwinter Thieves Guild
The very first DnD computer game I ever played was DarkSun, AD&D and if anyone remembers it, was a rather good game but bit of a prequel for its successor title, Wake of the Ravager which I never got to play. Had everything everyone wanted. Except graphics. 8bit style ftw!
This game left a lasting impression of fantasy role-playing on the mind of a seven year old that, twenty one years later still remains.
I think I've played almost every D&D related pc game since, and I've played (with lordeeto) 3rd, 3.5 and (without lordeeto) 4th edition D&D on PnP.
I buy games worth $60 or $70 on a monthly basis, finish them within days of purchasing and then hold onto them for sentimental value. I don't get too involved in the hype sensationalism of games - I know that they're being made by other people, and I doubt any of them are clever enough to read my mind.
If I spend $60 on a game and play it over the weekend, finish with it but had a good time, I consider that $60 well spent...
So here's what I did and didn't like about this weekend.
Pros:
a) Combat, everyone has mentioned it, is very dynamic. I ran the Cloaktower as a Guardian with two clerics and two rogues, took out top kills, top damage dealt and top damage received, even came third in healing! If your paying attention, combat gives you a lot of fun and can reward you as well.
b) The quest motifs appear to be well conceived, it's not just kill the same old thing for the same old reasons. There is a variety in the cast. Pirates, undead, gnolls, etc.
c) The graphics are surprisingly not as bad as I had feared.
d) I found very few game breaking bugs. (Only three which were game breaking. Cloaktower, Clock Tomb and a crash for having my profile open and right clicking portrait to actually inspect myself as well)
e) Companions and mounts do appear to be well designed (and my horse seemed large and sturdy enough to actually carry a full plated armoured behemoth of a man)
How about some Cons?
a) No voice acting. Whether this is just because it's beta, I can't tell you. But I think that this might be a large contributor to players feeling unfulfilled with their quests. There is no urgency or humanity tying you to what your doing.
b) Leveling: It feels too fast, a bit too easy. Go to point a, do your quest, gain a level, finish the quest, start quest at point b, gain a level. I think the fun of the game is sustainable enough to drag levels out a bit, make us work for them more.
c) A lack of complexity in quests. The Clock Tomb (if anyone else got it done) actually made you think for one brief shining second. It had a riddle. A single, riddle. And this gave me high hopes that complexity is something the devs were waiting to confirm was missing.
d) The lack of all races and classes being made available for open beta? Nit picky I know, but I wanted to play a GWF.
Did it live up to my expectation? Yes. I came in here expecting that the $60 I spent was going to be used up in this weekend and come next beta weekend I wouldn't be looking forward to anything that has changed or been added... But I am. I'm hopeful that next weekend I can play another class, as another race (Drow or Dragonborn). I'm hopeful that they add voice acting, even a little. I'm hoping they tweak some of the text and make some of the quests require more brain then brawn. I'm hoping they slow down the pace of the game and add a bit of content in between levels to even balance the games combat with.
This isn't the D&D I grew up loving. This isn't PnP.
What this is, is Cryptics take on Neverwinter and FR, with some familiarity that kindles fond memories but gameplay that doesn't require anyone to have them to enjoy it. That is something that meets my expectations.
Now comes the finetuning. The levelling speed was rather fast, but it only shows a very rough estimate of what it'll be in the future. More mounts, companions, quests, animations, sounds, voice acting (I actually did hear some), etc. etc... I am curious how much (and I expect MUCH) will change between weekend 1 and 2.
The difference between a crude water glass and a champagne glass is in the detail. Both fulfill their function perfectly, but the champagne glass is more refined. And that is what's gonna happen to NWO in the near future.
No Classes released: I know they and others keep using the word, but what I have seen are Paragon Paths released. If these are premade characters to start things off, then I have less issue with it.
No Feats: Again I know I saw a tab with the word feat, but there were no feats in it. There was only another skill/enhancement tree.
Console like controls: I push a button and it does a dramatic animation, but I did nothing to do that fancy high-flying, spinning thing that ended in an explosion other than hit one button.
Feel free to explain if you have seen otherwise in the actual gameplay. Using the words it is only beta are not encouraging, in my experience things only go downhill from actual betas which I am not sure this is. As in, things keep getting cut due to time constraints.
I think the game is going to do very well people in the beta this weekend (was blown away at how many there were) seem mostly happy, and I only saw one "OMGz0Rz refund!!"
Well said...oh and there is voice acting, not much and people with certain sound cards are having issues hearing it, but what's there is well done.
Saying that, there are some good features and if you think of your payment as "crowd funding" the project then it makes sense.
I find my cleric in Neverwinter is just a bam bam bam kind of flat character. All I can do is lob spells around, and nothing else.
He is right tho. Every press video coming out makes the game look like tera/gw2 clone, the real feel of D&D is not there, The basic format has just been hammered to bits... Going in with 5 classes and the 8 standard races one of which you need to pay 200$ for. There is three times the class BASE in DDO..... This is like 2 generations down from that and while other games will be pumping out 12-15 classes in new mmos over the next 2 years we are sitting here with the ENTIRE 4.0 Advanced class list being ignored. Why? Is what we are asking. WHY have they taken the D&D 4.0 background and chopped it down to D&D 1.0...
It is a step backwards.
Hey mate, I've had helped a few people out with injuries, there are a few things that can help you out with that. For mainly left hand play see Steelseries keyboard as it does 100% more then your standard keyboard the other thing you can do is set up a joystick for mouse integration there are a few tricks for setting that up online if you google that. I got that set up for a vet who could not use most of his right arm. PM me if you need help.
There is not way to have a MMO coded to allow everything my players have ever attempted in D&D.
Such as using porridge in a trap to surprise an enemy.
And if you want more riddles and less hacking then I am sure you will find it in later user created content. Just remember to rate it and donate it so the author will know to make more like it.
I see great potential in a game that allows it's players to expand on a basic concept.
As an RPGA member and long time Dungeon Master I know that the true greatness of D&D (Any version of D&D) is that the PLAYERS are the ones who make it great.
All true, and I get their "attempt" at trying to make a new more "hip" version of D&D but there are a few holes with that, Like comic book movies none were ACTUALLY good until they started to follow the real stories follow the lore better. The whole avengers swing was not only THEE best multi-movie tie in series ever done but was well made because they finally understood they needed to follow the original concept better and not try to do a x-men 3 "the directors own vision" which is garbage.
There are so many things that needed to be added that were not hard. Races is not a massive undertaking that they seem to be telling us it is. And from what I am seeing in the videos the classes are not that mind blowing that they could not have shortened the cap on the existing games top end and invested MUCH MUCH more into the class field. Take STO, the biggest mistake they made was on release you could go to the biggest and best ship and to admiral in about 12 hours. There was no where to go from there. Same now with Neverwinter.... The level cap is retardedly high for a D&D game as is. classes are minimal and any new direction post launch will just be a bigger joke to the systems roots.
Right now player made content might be the only salvation of the game but sadly without direct dm control this is missing the potential the game could have, So no... I don't think it was that hard to make an actual D&D game instead of having a slightly flavored D&D inspired game. It just spits in the face of anyone that actually likes both NWN AND D&D. Honestly why didn't they just make it after some other part of D&D why did they need to drag the wonderful IP of NWN threw the mud.
Action RPG - Meets 3rd Person - Meets Gauntlet - Meets MMO style.
I think it's been pretty clear for a long time this wasn't going to be a all out effort to recreate all DnD mechanics. So it is best to just leave labels and names out of it and judge the game, hence it is the mix I mentioned above. Now do you like that or not? To me I am ok with it because I like 3rd Person ARPG's, there aren't a ton yet, but to me it's much more immersive then top down ARPG's.
The classes I think it's ok to say they are giving us in many way pre-made classes. Sort of interesting because past Cryptic efforts they were leading the way in many regards giving you a lot of character choice. My guess it's only 5 at launch because they plan to sell the other characters, they do need income and to me that is a perfect thing to sell. Those are things I would buy and I get it.
Things I would like to see:
1. Higher difficulty. Notice you do hundreds of damage, they do 25. Notice you swing 3 times a second, they swing once every 3 seconds. Too many times green bars on a group barley move downward as they mow down many mobs, that needs some action there to get the blood flowing. (Suggest: Multiple difficulty choices, or auto-scaling dungeons as you beat them)
2. Player scaling/mentoring so it's easier to group up. (Cryptic has been a leader here as well)
3. More active skills. Even just 2 more. (Or active load-outs we can build and swap on the fly)
4. I haven't seen a lot of the open world, I seen some of it, but the game has a lot of corridors in general.
5. Way to turn off all flashy effects around items. ARPG's are adventure lite, at least give us some sense of discovery by not telegraphing everything. Go here! Pick Me Up!
6. Deadly Traps.
7. Animations are a bit stiff.
8. Like the roar the large trolls was it? when you kill them they whale out. They should do that in battle, and it should be an attack skill for them of some sort. More sounds like that during combat can add to immersion. Perhaps a DM Gauntlet style speaking here/there could add a little something to.
No comment on story or presentation.
No comments on the Foundry, don't know enough.
But I'm definitely playing this game and hopefully for a long time. I only mentioned things to improve upon, pretty much all the other things are looking good.
The fact is PW has quite a few MMOs released and almost all are mediocre at best, with the exception of CoH, that being said, I hope lightning strikes twice in the same place and this game is just as good (it should be better all things considered).
But I want to thank the people who posted here, for their honesty especially. I respect the fact that they allow good and bad feedback unlike SWTOR where beta testers that posted bad feedback on the forums had their posts removed of overflooded by fanboiz.
I am sorry PW, I will not be paying 200 $ just to buy a race in a game I may end up uninstalling after a few days.
I don't think you need to apologize, I don't think they feel that is a requirement. Face it, the $200 is for the whales with either tons of desire or simply deep pockets. I am not buying the $200 offering as the other 99% won't be. I'm still bullish on the game and will be playing. It is FTP, repeat after me... FTP. These founders packs are special offers, nothing more.
It was never about it being free. As I said in my first post, I am aware it's a F2P game and also that I would gladly pay them either by buying a product or simply by donation if they would have made a game in the true spirit of Neverwinter and D&D (Forgotten Realms).
The fact is, this game only uses the NW theme and nothing else. Neverwinter and all the D&D games aren't great because of the story or any other factor. It's because they know how to set up the story using little details. For example, the quest dialogue is simply bad in this game because it does not offer you the feel of a D&D quest and rather just a text very few can be arsed to read. I'm not saying they should do something a'la SWTOR but they could do much better, especially in a game where quests and adventures are so focused upon. Otherwise most people will just skip through the text and follow the glowing path.
But my mind is not dead set that this game is gonna be bad or fail, I simply won't be buying what they are trying to sell at the moment because I'm just not convinced it's worth it.
There has not been a good D&D game for years now (since Mask of the Betrayer). I hope this game changes that, but from what I've seen of the beta myself and from what the people who got to play there say, I'm not betting on it.
Have you tried: Knights of the Chalice? That is great. That is computer DnD.
So for a light, action paced game, it looks pretty decent. The problem is that there is not a whole lot of difference between this game, TERA or GW2. I am trying to find a reason to play this game in stead of those games and it is becoming difficult.
It's not D&D, there is nothing D&D about this game except the setting....of course, my version of D&D is solving problems in a group format not hack n slash your way through a 45 minute dungeon run to get some loot then rinse and repeat for the next run.
The problem is the foundry. You can say that this is a great thing.....but I play STO and there is one, very big thing you have to take into account when playing the foundry. Your content is dependent on other people. So in order for you to have a great foundry experience....someone has to actually make that.
Anyone who has played STO or City of Heroes with it's mission generator knows that the VAST majority of missions are total garbage. You may get one out of 100 that you deem worthy of playing and would recommend to a friend.
The question is this. Will the truly creative people play this game just for the foundry and will they play it longer than 2 months (the usual time you drop a themepark MMO) If those people leave...by by good missions. It is the same way with Skyrim. Morrowind and Oblivion had robust mod communities with thousands of mobs, Skyrim does not. There are some good ones, but those other two games dwarf Skyrim and it is not because Skyrim is newer...a lot of the modders just dont play the game anymore.
If NW lacks staying power, the foundry is in big trouble.
This is a good D&D game. I STILL fire it up on occasion.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Temple_of_Elemental_Evil_%28computer_game%29
Occam's Razor makes the cutting clean.