I would love that. It really is the game that just keeps on going, and if a development team kept releasing new content for module builders they could make a pretty penny and most people would be happy to buy it I would think.
Don't think they should focus on overhauling every rpg game out there. There's some new stuff to do, new ideas to develop and not be tied by contract saying you can't to do this, can't do that is way better when making games...
Enhancing Neverwinter Nights is the right call. But only if they also reanimate the carcasses of long forgotten premium modules back to life (Pirates of the Sword Coast, anyone?).
Beamdog's contract is for BG:EE and BG2:EE only. No contract exists for a remake of Icewind Dale, Icewind Dale II or Planescape: Torment as of now. Therefore, it vicariously ensues that the devs have no access to any resources from those titles, including portraits, animations, spells, and monsters. Modders may be able to port those contents to BG:EE once the game is released, but the devs are legally bound to work with the Baldur's Gate saga resources alone."
Rather than refreshing NWN, I think they're better off just making a new multiplayer-centric, custom persistent world friendly game. NWN's campaign, even the expansions, is by far the weak point of the series; the whole thing was designed as a sandbox for multiplayer.
Maybe the multiplayer component of BG3 can be what NWN's multiplayer component was. They could even one-up the "server characters" system of NWN by having three options: local characters and host server characters, like normal, as well as a new "Beamdog server chars" option which allows hosts to opt-in to Beamdog-set rules (a la Day Z). On a Beamdog-official servers, hosts can still use custom worlds but they would have to be vetted first. This would create an improved take on the Diablo online experience and would benefit both the company and the players; create a semi-regulated environment for fair multiplay that allows a non-local character to be played across several servers, but still allow enough modding flex so that the consumers can provide new content of their own instead of waiting for expansions or DLC or whatnot. And if you don't want to play on these semi-official servers, you can still play on completely custom servers.
It would be a great solution for both roleplay and dungeon crawl servers; allowing easy flow across varying RP servers without level 40 half-gnoll half-dragons rolling everywhere instead of being limited to one private tavern server if you want to stay away from the 13 year old egomaniacs, as well as providing a more balanced and constructive PvE environment if you just want to kill **** with other people (assuming Beamdog stays on top of making all the classes fun and useful and squashing any exploits).
The best analogy I can think of this is Minecraft. Yes, there are alot of custom servers, but the core, semi-regulated (Mojang sets the gameplay and the rules, players make their own creations) multiplayer experience of Adventure with other players online is a proven model of flexibility vs regulation.
There is just no way to enhance that pile without doing a total re-haul from the ground up.
This. The toolset is great and allows for amazing things, but the graphics, gameplay, storyline, GUI, everything else is just hopeless about NWN. I'd rather they either tackle the other Infinity Engine games or start work on Baldur's Gate 3: Baldur Harder after this one.
It would be a great solution for both roleplay and dungeon crawl servers; allowing easy flow across varying RP servers without level 40 half-gnoll half-dragons rolling everywhere instead of being limited to one private tavern server if you want to stay away from the 13 year old egomaniacs, as well as providing a more balanced and constructive PvE environment if you just want to kill **** with other people (assuming Beamdog stays on top of making all the classes fun and useful and squashing any exploits).
It’s almost depressing how familiar your description of servers sounds.
Yes I have also NWN Platinum Edition and NWN2 Platinum Edition but I think NWN2's graphic engine very bad . But it have very good features . And very buggy NWNEE will be really awesome .
Really? I've heard of lots of people being fairly ambivalent over NWN or finding it to be mediocre, but never outright dismissing it. I'd be interested to know your reasons.
Really? I've heard of lots of people being fairly ambivalent over NWN or finding it to be mediocre, but never outright dismissing it. I'd be interested to know your reasons.
Well it's been ages since I played through it so I don't really remember details that well. Basically though coming from BG2 I had extremely high expectations for the game and was hugely disappointed by it. Reasons included, even for the time, extremely ugly 3d graphics, compare that to the 2d graphics of IE games that still hold up to this day. Also coupled with the UI it had it really felt like you were playing some game creation kit, instead of a fantasy RPG.
I can't really remember anything about the main campaign, except that it had to with snowglobe(s) and I think it had at least one dragon in it?? Which kinda says it wasn't all that mesmerizing, and the main thing RPGs for me is the story. I also really hated the lack of party members, they were probably the single biggest thing that brought the IE games alive and BioWare just completely threw them out. Although if I remember correctly the expansions had them again, though was is it just one or two? Anyway the expansions were lot better than vanilla NWN, but still nowhere near the quality of BG2.
All in all as Solaufein said you pretty much have overhaul the whole game, unlike BG games you were just had to apply some polish.
The graphics are atrocious, especially character graphics. I'm generally not picky about graphics unless I'm playing in a 3D environment. 2D I'm not that picky. Being in 3D, 1st person, your environment and how it looks is priority. Its a distraction from your immersion of the game if the graphics are poor. You could have the best written story for a game but if you have ugly blocky looking characters, it kills it for me.
I'm trying a run on NWN2 atm, the graphic isn't an too problematic issue, the main problem of the game is the artifical inteligence, it's a pain sometimes to play with NPCs being so stupid. I don't like much OC but it's passable.
I think i'm not the only one that thinks that NWN was atrocious, especially in the graphics and animation/gameplay department.
Pretty much shows that 3D will not win over 2D always eh? I still prefer to look at BG, even though i don't find the art direction appealing there either, and that says a lot about NWN.
I don't see how they would be able to completely change a graphics engine of a game just to enhance it.
I think i would prefer an Icewind Dale enhanced edition, but only if they have the art assets this time, so they can improve the graphics.
@ikrivetko em... what i meant is that 3D will not always win over 2D, i worded it weird and placed "always" at the end, so i guess you could stretch it to your interpretation. And i see you were not the only one to take it like that.
Comments
It really is the game that just keeps on going, and if a development team kept releasing new content for module builders they could make a pretty penny and most people would be happy to buy it I would think.
*glares towards Atari*
But:
"2. Contractual limitations.
Beamdog's contract is for BG:EE and BG2:EE only.
No contract exists for a remake of Icewind Dale, Icewind Dale II or Planescape: Torment as of now. Therefore, it vicariously ensues that the devs have no access to any resources from those titles, including portraits, animations, spells, and monsters. Modders may be able to port those contents to BG:EE once the game is released, but the devs are legally bound to work with the Baldur's Gate saga resources alone."
it is from theme, maybe you dislike ))):
[BG:EE] PLEASE READ - LIST OF THINGS THAT CAN'T BE DONE.
But, it is good information about posibilities and situation for today.
One day, maybe something can be changed))))))))
And, for me, Baldurs Gate much more glorious game. So it is good decision to bring back BG first.
Maybe the multiplayer component of BG3 can be what NWN's multiplayer component was. They could even one-up the "server characters" system of NWN by having three options: local characters and host server characters, like normal, as well as a new "Beamdog server chars" option which allows hosts to opt-in to Beamdog-set rules (a la Day Z). On a Beamdog-official servers, hosts can still use custom worlds but they would have to be vetted first. This would create an improved take on the Diablo online experience and would benefit both the company and the players; create a semi-regulated environment for fair multiplay that allows a non-local character to be played across several servers, but still allow enough modding flex so that the consumers can provide new content of their own instead of waiting for expansions or DLC or whatnot. And if you don't want to play on these semi-official servers, you can still play on completely custom servers.
It would be a great solution for both roleplay and dungeon crawl servers; allowing easy flow across varying RP servers without level 40 half-gnoll half-dragons rolling everywhere instead of being limited to one private tavern server if you want to stay away from the 13 year old egomaniacs, as well as providing a more balanced and constructive PvE environment if you just want to kill **** with other people (assuming Beamdog stays on top of making all the classes fun and useful and squashing any exploits).
The best analogy I can think of this is Minecraft. Yes, there are alot of custom servers, but the core, semi-regulated (Mojang sets the gameplay and the rules, players make their own creations) multiplayer experience of Adventure with other players online is a proven model of flexibility vs regulation.
I'd rather they either tackle the other Infinity Engine games or start work on Baldur's Gate 3: Baldur Harder after this one.
I've heard of lots of people being fairly ambivalent over NWN or finding it to be mediocre, but never outright dismissing it.
I'd be interested to know your reasons.
I can't really remember anything about the main campaign, except that it had to with snowglobe(s) and I think it had at least one dragon in it?? Which kinda says it wasn't all that mesmerizing, and the main thing RPGs for me is the story. I also really hated the lack of party members, they were probably the single biggest thing that brought the IE games alive and BioWare just completely threw them out. Although if I remember correctly the expansions had them again, though was is it just one or two? Anyway the expansions were lot better than vanilla NWN, but still nowhere near the quality of BG2.
All in all as Solaufein said you pretty much have overhaul the whole game, unlike BG games you were just had to apply some polish.
Even though NWN scenarios and 3D system is very nice, there is no "party" (two or three, tops) , and there's also little interaction.
Pretty much shows that 3D will not win over 2D always eh? I still prefer to look at BG, even though i don't find the art direction appealing there either, and that says a lot about NWN.
I don't see how they would be able to completely change a graphics engine of a game just to enhance it.
I think i would prefer an Icewind Dale enhanced edition, but only if they have the art assets this time, so they can improve the graphics.