Second expansion for Neverwinter Nights 2 (Storm of Zehir)

[Lantzen]

Well, atleast it's better in MotB then in normal NWN2. There it was plain broken, you coudeln't get all the influence dialougs with numerous partymembers if you didn't use bugs in the game.

[Aash Li]

Hmm... any modders what to try and do a female model edit to make them skinnier? Particularly the plaintouched. >.> Or a model switch with the elves...

 

Darth333, that complainer thread is hilarious.

[Inyri]

Hmm... any modders what to try and do a female model edit to make them skinnier? Particularly the plaintouched. >.> Or a model switch with the elves...

They were pretty chunky come to think of it, weren't they? I always thought my warlock looked a bit heavy.

[Aash Li]

Yes they were, and they werent attractive in the slightest... except from the neck up. The way I describe them:

 

Its like the model designer was blind, and he was touching several different women to get an idea of what a woman was like physically. And thats what we ended up with. >.>

[Aash Li]

Does anyone know what the name of the base skin of the model is? For female air genasi? Such as:

 

p_hhf_cl_body164.dds

 

I know thats not it though...

[Pavlos]

Source

 

A fact-sheet has just been released for Storm of Zehir -- Obsidian's second expansion for 2006's Neverwinter Nights 2 -- which details the features of the game. While it's mostly a rehash of old information, it does contain our first glimpses of the game in action.

 

"Developed by Obsidian Entertainment, Atari will be expanding on the Neverwinter Nights 2 franchise with Neverwinter Nights™ 2: Storm of Zehir, by delivering an engrossing DUNGEONS & DRAGONS® experience. Neverwinter Nights™ 2: Storm of Zehir hearkens back to the days of the Baldur's Gate and Icewind Dale franchises by including full party customization, dungeon crawling, and free exploration of a non-linear game world via Overland Map. This thrilling game is scheduled for worldwide launch in Q4 2008."

 

The shots aren't that breathtaking but, then again, look at some of the first shots of Mask of the Betrayer compared to the end product.

 

Updated

 

Source

 

Rock, Paper, Shotgun have just put up a preview of Obsidian's Storm of Zehir and CD Projekt Red's The Witcher: Enhanced Edition on their site.

 

It's an interesting, if short, read if you want to hop on over. It's a shame that the coverage of Storm of Zehir at E3 has not been greater; it seems to be shaping up nicely

 

"Now, I have absolutely no experience with NWN2, so my impression of the expansion pack – that it seems kind of good – might not really mean anything, but the title does feature some interesting features, from a party system that gives you four main characters (in any situation, such as conversations, you can pick the one which will do the best job) and an intentional effort to make the skills from Dungeons and Dragons that no one ever uses useful (so you can “craft” items from debris found at your shipwreck, or use “spot” to find hidden items)."

[Arátoeldar]

I'm confused about the references to BG & IWD. Are they only talking about the Tactical Combat only of both games. Or are they also including the Party Interaction of BGII?

[mur'phon]

Heh, It sounds like I'll be able to create 4 chars instead of one, if so, it might be time to let IWD2 rest.

[Q]

Neverwinter Nights™ 2: Storm of Zehir hearkens back to the days of the Baldur's Gate and Icewind Dale franchises by including full party customization, dungeon crawling, and free exploration of a non-linear game world via Overland Map.

All right. If this is true then I might have to finally break down and buy this game.

[Pavlos]

Source

 

IGN has posted a short preview of Storm of Zehir which details the new party dialogue system and overland map but does contain some spoilers for the beginning of the game. A more in-depth and spoiler-free (but unofficial) explanation of the dialogue system can be found here.

 

Since you're in charge of a four-person party now, you can use each member to access different dialogues. The fighter in our party, for instance, intimidated a soldier into giving up his sword, while our rogue used diplomacy to convince another survivor to hand over her bow. This is all part of the developers' efforts to make your characters' skills more meaningful throughout the game. Another extension of that thinking is the ability of craft-trained characters to create weapons out of the wreckage that has washed ashore.

 

Update

 

Source

 

Gametrailers has uploaded an interview about Storm of Zehir with the mysterious Matthew Rorie, Obsidian's new(ish) press manager. Perhaps most interesting is the screen behind Mr. Rorie's head which shows Storm of Zehir live and in action. If you keep an eye on it you should catch a clear view (especially if you're watching in high-def) of the overland map.

 

 

The map certainly appears to do what they say: open up the environment to player exploration, extending the use of Spot as a skill beyond finding ore deposits in the OC. We shall have to wait and see. Keep up the good work, guys.

 

Interest++

 

Update 2

 

Source

 

Every time I close our news management page, I come across a new piece of Storm of Zehir news. Anyway, a French site, La Bibliothèque de Neverwinter Nights, has managed to get its paws on some new snaps of SoZ.

 

 

I'm not sure if the area design is of as high a standard as MotB but I suppose we will have to play the game to find out.

 

With the emphasis placed on exploration, I would imagine that they have less time than they did on NX1 (a game with an emphasis on a tight and short plot) to craft areas as breath-taking as Ashenwood. I have this horrible feeling that the world map will simply end up the same way as Mass Effect's unexplored worlds: generic maps with a smattering of combat. Time will tell...

[RyuuKage]

i'm 50/50 on this...a new expansion is awesome, but of the two campaigns we have, only one can be played to the finish for me (OC always crashes at some random point during the Crossroad Keep Siege...YAY!!!), so i've never seen the ending, but MOTB worked great...hope that's true of Zehir

[Arátoeldar]

I am already slightly disappointed in SoZ. The party limit of four reminds me of the horrible console Baldur's Gate games.

[stoffe]

I am already slightly disappointed in SoZ. The party limit of four reminds me of the horrible console Baldur's Gate games.

 

Is there really much difference from how it is in Neverwinter Nights 2 already? Both the NWN2 campaign and Mask of the Betrayer gave you a party of 4 through parts of those campaigns, if I remember correctly.

 

(And hopefully you can mod it, like those two earlier games, to bring along as many as you want )

[Arátoeldar]

Is there really much difference from how it is in Neverwinter Nights 2 already? Both the NWN2 campaign and Mask of the Betrayer gave you a party of 4 through parts of those campaigns, if I remember correctly.

 

(And hopefully you can mod it, like those two earlier games, to bring along as many as you want )

 

You're right. I must have been having a senior citizen moment.

[Pavlos]

Source

 

NWVault have posted an interview with Obsidian's Tony Evans, lead designer on Storm of Zehir, the second expansion pack to the developer's 2006 Neverwinter Nights 2. Spoilers are present within the article but are clearly marked for those wishing a virgin gaming experience.

 

Yes, there is something I’d like to get off my chest... I am really, really jealous of all the people who will get to play Storm of Zehir later this year. You see, the team at Obsidian set out to make the kind of RPG that we’ve always wanted to play but, the problem with that is, game developers typically cannot bear to play the games they make once they are finished. It would be kind of like dating your daughter after you’ve finished raising her. So, you guys (and gals) will be able to enjoy Storm of Zehir in ways that are sadly lost to us poor developers.

 

Looks like Annie Carlson is taking on the role of Creative Director for Storm of Zehir, the role held by George Ziets on Mask of the Betrayer. We also have confirmation of Port Llast's return, safe and secure with some new music.

[mur'phon]

Yay, so I'll get to create my own party, though I'm not exactly thrilled to return to port everlast.

[Pavlos]

Source

 

RPG Vault has posted an interview with a few of the core team members -- including Creative Lead Annie Carlson -- working on Obsidian's new expansion pack for Neverwinter Nights 2, Storm of Zehir.

 

You will return to Crossroad Keep, Neverwinter and West Harbor. Each map has been extensively updated, and is now much more detailed than the original versions. In Neverwinter, you return to the Blacklake District. The main area in front of the castle has been completely rebuilt after the battles the community endured in the previous games. The Thayan Academy and Temple of Waukeen have constructed new building headquarters located here. Also, the castle wall has a new viewing stand to see the rest of the cityscape.

 

Obsidian continues to impress me with each and every article they put out about this game. Personally, I'm hoping this new dialogue system add yet another dynamic to dialogue.

 

Rather than just having skills affect how an NPC reacts, what about race, class, and appearance too? Sure your Drow party member may have a huge Diplomacy score but that doesn't mean he's going to get a positive reaction from the average person on the street. The player will be forced not only to think about whose line to choose in a dialogue based on statistics but also based on what sort of emotional response the character will have to the speaker. Perhaps that's a bit too progressive in terms of NPC interaction for an expansion pack, though...

 

We shall see.

[SpaceAlex]

What would we do without you, Pavlos? You always bring us the latest news...

[Bee Hoon]

And they're all new, no leftovers from Neverwinter Nights 2 or Mask of the Betrayer

*weeps for the lack of Bishop and Asa Seigel's voice*

 

Apart from that, it sounds fantastic! I always thought it was silly how traveling with someone with survival as a skill made absolutely no difference, one way or another. Looks like I'm going to have to save up for it!

[dowon]

RPG Vault has posted an interview with a few of the core team members -- including Creative Director Annie Carlson -- working on Obsidian's new expansion pack for Neverwinter Nights 2, Storm of Zehir.

 

The only Creative Director/Chief Creative Officer at Obsidian is Chris Avellone. He always will be unless he leaves the company. CD/CCO oversees Obsidian's all projects.

 

Thus, Annie Carlson is not a creative director. She may be a Creative Lead because a CL at Obsidian means a lead writer for a single project.

[Corinthian]

Well, I gotta give Obsidian some credit - they made it so that I don't have to deal with party members like Elanee the Rapist, Qara, or Neeshka. *Shudders* On the other hand, this means no genuinely amusing banters, such as with Sand. Ah, well, you can't have your cake and eat it, too.

[Pavlos]

Thus, Annie Carlson is not a creative director. She may be a Creative Lead because a CL at Obsidian means a lead writer for a single project.

My mistake, I'll correct the misprint.

[Emperor Devon]

sequels tend to get darker and grittier, but we've gone in the other direction with Storm of Zehir. <snip> it's a tale of light-hearted adventure and exploration. It's more fun and less serious.

 

Ah, crap.

[Pavlos]

Source

 

Fourteen shots of Obsidian's Storm of Zehir can be found over on Voodoo Extreme. While mostly showing off some of the game's combat scenarios -- and a dinosaur -- we do catch a glimpse or two of the world map in Glorious High Resolution.

[Pavlos]

Source

 

GameSpot have uploaded a ten minute long video of Obsidian's Storm of Zehir expansion pack for 2006's Neverwinter Nights 2 featuring the world's smoothest boat journey. The video does contain spoilers for the beginning of the game so you may wish to avert your eyes.

 

 

The video features the first full-blooded demonstration of the new dialogue system which should clarify the mechanics to those who are still uncertain. In addition we catch our first detailed look at how the world map works and looks. A pretty packed video, all in all, which shows off some impressive area design.