Neverwinter Nights Demo

Bioware is a name that resonates with RPG fans, thanks to the continuous flux of good titles released by the studio over the course of a few decades. The Baldur’s Gate saga, Mass Effect and Dragon Age are just a few of the examples, which should say a lot about what they are capable of on a good day. There are, however, some less-than-good attempts as well, some of which were disappointing to say the least.

Neverwinter Nights is the type of game that’s pretty difficult to categorize when it comes to quality, mostly because it got some parts incredibly right, but it fails to rise to expectations in other aspects. That’s not to say the game is not worth a few playthroughs, but given the amount of potential available in the story and the characters that are part of the action, a lot more could have been achieved with just a little bit of work and imagination.

Story-wise, things are fine and dandy, as one would expect from the wise dragons at Bioware. It all starts in the city of Neverwinter, which is attacked by mercenaries, who are after a collection of rare animals gathered from all over the realm. You are a puny recruit that catches the eye of Lady Aribeth, a paladin who’s close to the royal family. One thing leads to another and you are sent on a quest to recover the animals, but the whole thing turns to be part of a much greater conspiracy and, soon enough, ancient races awaken and the entire world is in danger.

The quests themselves are pretty varied and captivating, but many more of them require you to kill stuff, rather than try to talk, trick, or avoid enemies. You can only hire a henchman to follow you around, since you cannot form a party and you go through the entire adventure alone. Obviously, this makes the gameplay a bit repetitive and dull at times, not to mention boring when you have to clear long corridors of enemies for a few hours at end.

On the other hand, the atmosphere is definitely worth it, because the story turns out to be quite exquisite toward the end and the perfect blend of music and environmental sounds greatly contribute to a wonderful and memorable feeling. The same can be said about the visuals, which are fully 3D and quite detailed for the time of the game’s release. You may have some problems with the camera controls, but everything should become natural after you get used to it.

All things considered, Neverwinter Nights may not be Bioware’s pride and joy, but the game is an achievement on its own. Sure, the lack of party mechanics, heavy orientation toward hack-and-slash gameplay and the cliche-ridden story may turn some people off, but if you learn how to accept its defects, the game can be one of a truly unique experience.