Is it worth the money / time to buy NWN for single player?

[Legacy_Kraugan]

                Hello, I'll get right to the point. I've never played NWN or any of the expansion but I love rpgs, played Baldur's gate and Dragon age so many times and I wanted a new adventure. My question is; is NWN's single player anywhere near as good as Baldur's gate? Is it worth buying NWN just to play the single player?

I read a review somewhere and he only really liked the Hordes of the underdark campaign, is it worth it just to play that expansion maybe?

Thanks in advance.
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Mystery X]

               It's a bit of a different experience than Baldur's Gate, but the story and gameplay on NWN and both expansions are exceptional.  All three campaigns are worth playing.  I've only played it single player.

And it's pretty cheap on GOG.com, so why not give it a shot?
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Bannor Bloodfist]

               Ohhh man did you just open a can of worms!

Yes, it is worth it, especially considering how cheaply you can get a copy now.

You basically do need the full package, both expansions, but since they all come with the Diamond and later editions anyway, the fact that you need them is less of an issue now.

There are hundreds, nay, THOUSANDS of fan created modules that are free expansions as well.  All of those are available on the Vault.  It would be highly unlikely that you could find any game that offers as much playability as NWN does.
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Kraugan]

               Alright, Thanks! '> Yeah I noticed GOG.com has it very cheap, that's why I wanted to ask about the single player '> I really love the D&D ruleset, I wonder how NWN managed to escape me for so long.

I think I'll buy it straight away and try it tomorrow. Thanks again '>
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Estelindis]

               Hordes of the Underdark is easily the best Bioware-made single-player campaign (compared with the core campaign and Shadows of Undrentide), but, as Bannor says, there are so many great fan-made modules out there that the game is the best value for your dollar that the markerplace offers.
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_HipMaestro]

               Absolutely... if you like RPGs.  As has been mentioned, it's incredible how long the community has been active creating SP modules for all tastes.  Beside the modules there are uitilities available that can vastly modify the campaigns so that they play like an entirely different game than the original including an AI modification and redesign of the equipment.

As far as the comparison to the big party feel of BG, there are modules out there that do just that, though the campaigns are limited to 1 or 2 henchfolk.  I played a Vault module several months ago that was an NWN version of Ultima with a party of 6 to 8 IIRC.  I haven't searched the Vault but there may be a simulation of BG out in the Vault galaxy somewhere.  Maybe someone in the community knows if there is? *hint*

For a paltry ten bucks (that's 3 slices of pizza & a beer in my neck of the woods), a fan of RPG really can't go wrong. '>
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_UrkOfGreyhawk]

               Buy it!

The NWN OC is pretty lame IMHO, but Shadows of Undrentide is pretty good, and the Premium Modules are awesome, especially Wyvern Crown of Cormyr. There are also a lot of great fan made modules and campaigns.

NWN is the best $10 you'll ever spend.
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Magical Master]

               There are quite a few amazing single player campaigns that are custom made.  My favorite in terms of a general campaign is the Aielund Saga.
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Giku]

               Let's Analyze:

Pro:

• 3 and 3.5 D&D Ruleset
• Forgotten Realms
• Very good Single Player (I'm very picky man)
• Very good experience
• Awesome sound
• A colossal hand-made modules quantity
• Very funny multiplayer if you want to play it (especially with your firends)
• Very cool 'Epic Spells'

Contro:

• Party composed only by you, your follower (evocation and pet in case) instead of a full party like NWN2
• Maybe a little bit "flat" world, but we are talking about a game dated 2002.

Here is my point of view. '>
               
               

               

                     Modifié par Giku, 05 septembre 2011 - 12:08 .
                     
                  

            

[Legacy_Bannor Bloodfist]

               Actually, if you use the OHS by OldMansBeard which is a set of scripts that you place into your override folder, you CAN get more control of your party, adding your own characters in as henchmen.

It comes pretty complete with documentation on how to use it, and will work in the OC and Expansion packs as well provided that you are patched up to version 1.69.
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_AndarianTD]

               

Giku wrote...

Contro: Party composed only by you, your follower (evocation and pet in case) instead of a full party like NWN2

That depends. As several others have already emphasized, the real play value of NWN is in its vast library of often high-quality community-built adventure modules. There's nothing in the game that inherently restricts the number of followers, so the size of your party depends on the module's design. I've played (and created) some that will allow a party of six or more.

The difference between NWN on the one hand, and NWN2 and Dragon Age on the other, is that you can't have direct control of your party members in NWN. All companions are technically henchmen, controlled by the AI but who you can give generalized orders to. There are also AI packages that'll give you more customizable control over your henchmen.

If you're looking for information on NWN modules, here are a few good resources:

• The NWN Vault. This is the main source of available downloadable modules and custom content, along with community ratings and reviews. You can find the top modules list here.
• The NWN Reviewer's Guild. Read careful reviews of NWN community modules to help decide what you might like to play.
• The Academy for Modding Excellence (AME). We award the Golden Dragon Awards for excellence in module and custom content development for NWN and NWN2; you can find our list of finalists and winners here.

               
               

               

                     Modifié par AndarianTD, 05 septembre 2011 - 02:44 .
                     
                  

            

[Legacy_HipMaestro]

               

Bannor Bloodfist wrote...

Actually, if you use the OHS by OldMansBeard which is a set of scripts that you place into your override folder, you CAN get more control of your party, adding your own characters in as henchmen.
.

That brings up a point that may be pertinent to the OP's bias towards a BG-like dynamic.  As far as combat management goes, I've played some large party modules from the Vault, essentially what OHS provide via pre-made characters.  But that RP interaction aspect between the members of the party I have never found anywhere.  You happen to know of any modules that have provided convo interaction betwenn all the party members like in BG?
               
               

               
            

[Legacy__Guile]

               No other RPG even remotely compares to NWN 1, not even close...

Some may have better graphics, but in the content department, pfft, nothing is within 10 miles of NWN...