Why do NWN modders avoid NWN2

[Legacy_Frith5]

               

No doubt.  Even the OC had Mount Galardrym, which was 32x24.  I couldn't tell you where to look for more, since as I said, my impression is the opposite.

Am I wrong, or is that 32x24 area actually cut through with narrow walkable areas? The Mount Galardrym area feels like you're on roads through the area, and you cannot leave them. So (unless I'm mistaken, which is a distinct possibility), it might say 32x24 on the area size, but that doesn't equate to that much open, walkable area. Right?

               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Tchos]

               

It is cut through with narrow walkable areas, yes.  It doesn't have to be.  The entire thing can be walkable.  It was a design choice for the area (for encounter placement, plot points, etc.), not a limitation for the engine, which is what I'm trying to express.  I took that area and made it all walkable.

               
               

               
            

[Legacy_kamal_]

               

Am I wrong, or is that 32x24 area actually cut through with narrow walkable areas? The Mount Galardrym area feels like you're on roads through the area, and you cannot leave them. So (unless I'm mistaken, which is a distinct possibility), it might say 32x24 on the area size, but that doesn't equate to that much open, walkable area. Right?

You can have a 32x32 open area, I put one of that size (it was fairly flat farmland) in one of my campaigns. Performance at that size can be an issue, moreso for PWs than single player. That area size is large enough the builder needs to take care to give the player something of interest so they dont just get bored walking through it.


With the ability to scale things in nwn2, including the players, people have made areas that seem even larger than the 32x32 limit by scaling everything down, allowing for pseudo 64x64 or96x96 areas.


Nwn2 does have a hardcap on the number of objects that can be in an area. Its around 3250, and depending on how detailed you make things you can get to that limit in a smaller area, particularly if you use something like the building construction kit (bck) someone made, the bck is basically small sections of walls/floors/roofs that you can use to make custom buildings from.
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_rjshae]

               

Are there any modules with this big areas? I wonder if there are secondary reasons for them seemingly not showing up in game.

 

It often comes down to the question of, "why do you need to build an area that big"? One reason is because you're building a sandbox area. But the standard modules are all plot-driven vehicles that permit the player a limited set of paths to follow, so they didn't need huge areas; just a few large areas.

 

Building a huge (32x32) area of decent quality is a pretty large commitment in time, energy, and creativity, so you need to have the right motivation to do it. But for that same commitment, you can build four unique 16x16 areas or 16 8x8 areas. It all depends on what is driving you to make the module in the first place.

 

A good use of such a large area would be for an overland map, which you might use if you were, say, rebooting some of the old GoldBox games. Unfortunately, I don't believe there are many modules that use an OM. Another use of a large area is for a sprawling interior dungeon--the wide space allows you to design it without much regard for the square borders.

               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Tchos]

               

With the ability to scale things in nwn2, including the players, people have made areas that seem even larger than the 32x32 limit by scaling everything down, allowing for pseudo 64x64 or96x96 areas.

 

Such as the overland maps in SoZ which I wasn't going to mention, which are 24x20, but all objects and creatures are shrunk to 50%, and movement speed reduced to match, so it feels like 48x40, and both are entirely walkable without paths.

 

Nwn2 does have a hardcap on the number of objects that can be in an area. Its around 3250, and depending on how detailed you make things you can get to that limit in a smaller area, particularly if you use something like the building construction kit (bck) someone made, the bck is basically small sections of walls/floors/roofs that you can use to make custom buildings from.

 

Though possible, not too likely in my own experience, since even in my largest areas, full of BCK and my own custom placeable building parts, even in the one where I hand-placed individual paving stones to line the edges of a branching path and built a custom temple and had placeable walls and ceilings throughout, I didn't even get halfway to that limit.

 

A good use of such a large area would be for an overland map [...] Unfortunately, I don't believe there are many modules that use an OM.

 

There should be a list of ones that do.  5 or 6 come to mind immediately.

               
               

               
            

[Baaleos]

               I played NWN2 when it first came out - and Loved it - up until a bug occurred when the lizard men where running behind your woman to set her barn on fire, and then the cutscene wouldnt end.
Making the game impossible to complete - making my save game corrupt.

I think they resolved it with patches - but still, it put me off the game.
The area load time for nwn2 is almost as long as the module load time of nwn1.
In short - while everything looks prettier in NWN2 - it feels like you get less bang for your buck with nwn2.

Just my opinion like.
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Tarot Redhand]

               

Talking of large NwN 2 areas... Currently the first 2 entries on the constantly evolving front page of the new vault are both 32 x 32 prefabs - Highlands and Eschebaumhügel (and the screenies for Highlands look rather tasty). 

 

TR

               
               

               
            

[Legacy_henesua]

               

also speaking of huge areas, they don't work all that well in NWN1.

 

They take a very long time to load. Skyboxes can also clip them. And then there is the max distance that objects are rendered.

While I really like NWN1 I think it is fair to point out its limitations too.

               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Frith5]

               

Interesting stuff.

 

I remember when NWN first came out, I had an outlandish module design idea to try to simulate a MUD. LOL. I'd build hundreds of small areas that'd quickly load after transitions. Why? Not really sure. I was just explorin'. '>