Introduction

Developer: Bioware
Publisher: Black Isle
Neverwinter Nights official page: http://www.neverwinter.net
Expected Release: Late 2000

Historical Stuff

First, a few general details about Neverwinter Nights. It is based in the AD&D Forgotten Realms world, the same setting as Baldur's Gate, and the old classics like Pools of Radiance, Curse of the Azure Bonds, etc. On AOL there was a game called Neverwinter Nights that was the prototype for the massive multiplayer RPG like Ultima Online, Meridian 59 and EverQuest. It used a highly modified version of the game engine that powered the Gold Box classics.

To be honest, of all the reasons I could ever think of going to AOL, this was by far the best. It was an excellent reason… but it meant becoming an AOLer, and living with that shame for the rest of my life. Well, it's been 2 years since the game was shut down (July 1997), and while I regret not having the chance to play a classic… if I ever had to write gxwarspite@aol.com while doing an article, I'd shoot myself.

If you want more information on the original Neverwinter Nights, do a search on "neverwinter aol". That'll pop up quite a few sites - some of them still active! Just don't expect anymore AOL lovin' from the sites than I gave. You'll see why. I warned ya! :)

The New Neverwinter

The game was announced by BioWare (makers of Baldur's Gate, Tales of the Sword Coast, Shattered Steel) at GenCon, easily the single biggest gaming convention in the world… hosted in Milwaukee. Yes, the beer and pretzels wargame isn't called beer and pretzels without good cause.

Still, there were quite a few surprises that BioWare dropped on people - less players per server, 3D only graphics, and most importantly, a totally different style of play that seems as if they're trying to redefine the multiplayer RPG. Read on to find out how.