Preview of Neverwinter From Cryptic and PWE

I had a blast playing this weekend. There are some issues with it, but overall I really like the direction it's going in and The Foundry offers a lot of potential. I'll probably buy the Guardian Pack, although the Hero Pack is still a possibility.

I really enjoyed the Great Weapon fighter, and looking at the feats it looks like it's more versatile than the other classes. Naturally the class is an offensive powerhouse, but it's got a lot of great defensive potential as well. The class can break out of control effects, has a lot of mobility, and also has the ability to knock down multiple opponents at once. Even though Cryptic is terrible at PvP, this class has PvP written all over it.

I'm looking forward to seeing future classes coming out. Personally, I would have liked the Great Weapon Fighter to have been a Barbarian. And I'd like to see a Druid and Warlock class as well. Perhaps an alternate Rogue that focuses on ranged combat would be able to be implemented at some point. But my favorite base class in D&D 4.0 is the Warlord. If they release a Warlord, I'd be ecstatic.

I would wager the game is still another 4-6 months from launch, but these beta weekends have shown tremendous promise. The only significant hurdles that I saw were related to classes and races. Everything else (content) seems pretty solid. I would have liked to have had time to explore crafting, but I didn't manage to swing it.

I am bummed I missed out on last weekend. I really wanted to try the great weapon fighter.

They haven't announced any more beta weekends have they?

You may be right namikaze but I can see them releasing before June. If they take longer, maybe they will change their mind and release the archer and necro/pet class!

Well, all the classes become "pet" classes when you get companions. In fact, that was one thing I really wanted to try out and never got a chance to. The companions seem to be animals, people, whatever you choose. And from what I've read, you get a lot of customization - gear, skills, attributes, etc.

As far as a necromantic class, those are usually prestige classes of the basic Wizards, Warlocks, and Sorcerors in D&D 4. So I wouldn't count on that until an expansion. A ranged Striker that uses a bow would be a great addition, even if it's just a variation on the Rogue class. I think they'd really benefit from the Ranger, because then they could also have a Striker that has a Nature skill set for gathering resources. I really see the Ranger being in the game at launch - the community likes ranged combat, Rangers have always been a very popular class in all the D&D editions, and bows are super hot right now in video games.

More beta weekends have not been announced. Presumably the closed beta is still ongoing, and I wouldn't be a bit surprised if the build that we were playing on is different from the one the closed beta testers were using. So I anticipate seeing lots of news in coming weeks. I'd like to see them launch in May, but I don't think that's a goal that they should try to reach. The game still needs a lot of polish to be competitive, and this really needs to be Cryptic's and Perfect World's flagship game.

Beta Weekend 4 and Open Beta dates have been announced. Beta Weekend 4 will run from April 12 through April 14. The Open Beta begins on April 25 for Hero Pack purchasers, April 27 for Guardian Pack purchasers, and April 30 for everyone else.

Surprisingly:

Note: There will be no character wipes after April 25th.

So apparently their "Open Beta" will be more of a soft launch than a traditional open beta.

Also, the NDA on the Foundry has been lifted. That post links to two giant guides by Gillrmn: Part 0 and Part 1.

Javamancer wrote:

Beta Weekend 4 and Open Beta dates have been announced. Beta Weekend 4 will run from April 12 through April 14. The Open Beta begins on April 25 for Hero Pack purchasers, April 27 for Guardian Pack purchasers, and April 30 for everyone else.

Surprisingly:

Note: There will be no character wipes after April 25th.

So apparently their "Open Beta" will be more of a soft launch than a traditional open beta.

That seems weird. Have the clarified that the "no more wipes" includes the actual launch, or could it just be saying that there will be no more wipes for the duration of the open beta?

From what I've heard no more character wipes EVAR!

Their official Twitter account states that there will be a character wipe after Beta Weekend 4 but none after the Open Beta begins.

@NeverwinterGame wrote:

There will be no character wipes after April 25th (when five-day early access begins). #Neverwinter #OBT

‏@silken_one wrote:

@NeverwinterGame But will there be a wipe before that? Before/after BW4?

@NeverwinterGame wrote:

@silken_one There will be a wipe after #BetaWeekend Four. No more character wipes when #Neverwinter #OBT begins.

So it looks like Open Beta will be a soft launch, perhaps to allow people to start creating Foundry content before the official launch.

Javamancer wrote:

Their official Twitter account states that there will be a character wipe after Beta Weekend 4 but none after the Open Beta begins.

@NeverwinterGame wrote:

There will be no character wipes after April 25th (when five-day early access begins). #Neverwinter #OBT

‏@silken_one wrote:

@NeverwinterGame But will there be a wipe before that? Before/after BW4?

@NeverwinterGame wrote:

@silken_one There will be a wipe after #BetaWeekend Four. No more character wipes when #Neverwinter #OBT begins.

So it looks like Open Beta will be a soft launch, perhaps to allow people to start creating Foundry content before the official launch.

Until they flat out say characters from the open beta will carry over into the official release, I'd still be hesitant. What I'd really like to see is an official statement that there will be no wipe when the open beta ends. It could be that I'm just clinging to the standard definition of a beta though. From trying to find a clarification I've learned that it's somewhat typical for more recent MMOs to call what is, for all intents, their actual launch an "open beta" in an attempt to avoid criticism for releasing a game full of bugs.

Stengah wrote:

So it looks like Open Beta will be a soft launch, perhaps to allow people to start creating Foundry content before the official launch.

Until they flat out say characters from the open beta will carry over into the official release, I'd still be hesitant. What I'd really like to see is an official statement that there will be no wipe when the open beta ends. It could be that I'm just clinging to the standard definition of a beta though. From trying to find a clarification I've learned that it's somewhat typical for more recent MMOs to call what is, for all intents, their actual launch an "open beta" in an attempt to avoid criticism for releasing a game full of bugs.[/quote]

They aren't going to wipe characters once the "headstart" period begins (which is a couple days before the Open Beta officially starts.)

Shrug, not sure I want to play again at this point, I have had so many issues with my character getting warped back to some spot after running far away, or quest objects or doors being unusable. Have not found an answer on the boards, and have not heard of anyone else seeing those issues. I have tried new characters even, same thing. I feel like I wasted $60 on a game I most likely won't play, which is dissapointing becuase I love the story, and was so looking forward to this game.

Rainsmercy wrote:

Shrug, not sure I want to play again at this point, I have had so many issues with my character getting warped back to some spot after running far away, or quest objects or doors being unusable. Have not found an answer on the boards, and have not heard of anyone else seeing those issues. I have tried new characters even, same thing. I feel like I wasted $60 on a game I most likely won't play, which is disappointing because I love the story, and was so looking forward to this game.

I understand the frustration in having issues but isn't that the point of beta? It's not just to play the game early but to find bugs and submit them. Sure there were issues with the game, there were supposed to be! I wouldn't make a final decision on the game over what was meant to be a test of the servers and the game itself. I also ran into issues while testing but am still very excited for Neverwinter to be released! My loathe right now is that the next closed beta weekend I can't play even 1 minute (Boo!)

Stengah wrote:

Until they flat out say characters from the open beta will carry over into the official release, I'd still be hesitant. What I'd really like to see is an official statement that there will be no wipe when the open beta ends. It could be that I'm just clinging to the standard definition of a beta though. From trying to find a clarification I've learned that it's somewhat typical for more recent MMOs to call what is, for all intents, their actual launch an "open beta" in an attempt to avoid criticism for releasing a game full of bugs.

They've stated this several times now, both on their official forums and their twitter feed. The "open beta" is a soft release and the characters will not be wiped again once open beta begins. (The last character wipe will be after beta weekend 4.)

Neverwinter ‏@NeverwinterGame
There will be no character wipes after April 25th (when five-day early access begins). #Neverwinter #OBT

Steve Mink Jr. Steve Mink Jr. ‏@Zederok 18h
@NeverwinterGame is this considered released? Plus will Drow get released 60 days after this? Not used to F2P vernacular is this release day

Neverwinter ‏@NeverwinterGame
@Zederok Yes, released but not "live." Drow is playable for first 60 days for #Neverwinter Founders then available publicly 60 days after.

Steve Mink Jr. Steve Mink Jr. ‏@Zederok 18h
@NeverwinterGame So, saying it is in open beta is just semantics? If it's released, transactions are final, and there are no more wipes...

Neverwinter ‏@NeverwinterGame
@xk_tweets That's the case for #Neverwinter #OBT. No wipes, transactions are final.

They also confirmed this several times in this thread, including in this specific post on their official forums:

sominator wrote:

Correct - there will be a wipe before headstart/OBT, but not after!

thrudder wrote:

Did i read this right? NO character wipes after April 25th so that means next beta weekend characters get wiped, but the open beta charters will be saved for the when game goes live? anyone confirm this??

I had a lot of fun with beta and didn't have the problems others were having, so I'm excited for this game. I'm still debating which of the packs to buy.

Okay, the clarification Steve Mink Jr got was what I was looking for. I looked on their forums and didn't see any official clarification that the open beta is a "soft" launch, just a repeat of what sounded to me like something that could be taken to mean two things (either "no more wipes, ever" or "no more wipes for the duration of the open beta, then a final wipe when it actually launches"). It's an open beta in name only, and for all intents and purposes is an actual launch. It's really dumb not to say that and doesn't inspire confidence in their game if they're going to hide behind the "open beta" label, but I had fun with the demo they had at PAX East, so I'll play once it opens for everyone.

DeThroned wrote:
Rainsmercy wrote:

Shrug, not sure I want to play again at this point, I have had so many issues with my character getting warped back to some spot after running far away, or quest objects or doors being unusable. Have not found an answer on the boards, and have not heard of anyone else seeing those issues. I have tried new characters even, same thing. I feel like I wasted $60 on a game I most likely won't play, which is disappointing because I love the story, and was so looking forward to this game.

I understand the frustration in having issues but isn't that the point of beta? It's not just to play the game early but to find bugs and submit them. Sure there were issues with the game, there were supposed to be! I wouldn't make a final decision on the game over what was meant to be a test of the servers and the game itself. I also ran into issues while testing but am still very excited for Neverwinter to be released! My loathe right now is that the next closed beta weekend I can't play even 1 minute (Boo!)

Sure, I understand that, but when I see the same bug every weekend after submitting bug reports every time? It would be nice to see and test differnent parts of the game. Shrug, I already spent the $60, and it will technically be free to play when released other than the $60 I already spent, so we'll see.

I just plopped the $60 for a founders pack.
I think it will be totally worth it! (especially considering the foundry)

BW4 friend key for anyone who wants to give it a try and can type the fastest...

CYJ74-X5D-45LP

For those of you in the beta, I'd like to ask, can you do stuff with a big group of people (20+)? The reason I'm asking is I paid for a community playmate, and am looking for a decent free to play game that's not a shooter. Having a group DND night might be a lot of fun.

Well that was fun.
I played a thief to level 18 and a wizard to 12. I love the thief. LOVE.

At first I didn't like the movement, or lack of it during combat. I grew to not mind it at all and actually found it a nice change. I just got to the point where you get the free companion. That's a nice add on, I chose a cleric to keep me healed and even at it's low level it was doing a pretty decent job of keeping me alive. I didn't need to use my potions hardly at all.

Is that it for Beta until release?
Do we know when release is?
I did not buy into the founder sets so I will be going in empty and work hard for my bonuses

Founders get in to the open beta on the 25th and 27th respectively. Everyone else gets in on the 30th. Don't quote me on that but I believe those are the dates.

So basically you will have your hands on the open beta at the end of this month.

I will not be playing this at launch. In fact, I am going to check into getting my $60 back. I couildn't even play a new character this weekend without rubber banding. Deleted other characters, made a new character, still rubber banded. Uninstalled game, rebooted pc, reinstalled game, new character, still rubber banded. I have put in countless bugs for it. Who knows, could just be something with my connection, but I just upgraded my cable modem(had the issue before the upgrade) and Comcast doubled my speed.

You aren't alone. I had stalling quite a bit over the weekend. However, it was still playable for me. (i.e. did not cause any deaths)

I am a little puzzled by your frustration Rainsmercy. I know you are an experienced mmo player but you are acting like performance issues are a new outrage?!

Performance issues I can deal with. This is unplayable for me, that is the frustration. I understand it is beta, and I understand they are still working out bugs. Maybe its the hype, maybe its a setting I love, and I feel like I am being denied being able to play it. Maybe its just my computer or my connections, but the fact that I get a couple of the quests after the dragon bridge done and suddenly can't do anything else? Shrug, I don't know.

I saw something in the splash screen tips about being able to select another instance of the city. (if that is what is causing your problems)

Oh and I wonder if it is something similar to what I was experiencing the first beta weekend. I could not play a rogue past the dragon bridge. As a matter of fact I could never get to the dragon bridge with one. Yet I had no problems with the wizard, cleric or fighter.

It is fixed now. In fact my highest is now a thief. (it kinda sucks you have to wait to get stealth until 10)

One thing I am bummed about is that I thought we were going to be able to select which powers we got. This new point buy system seems worse that the old. Or maybe I just don't understand how it works. Do I have to save up points to buy new skills or are they unlock when I spend a certain amount?

Yea i'm totally not interested in this game anymore. I see it doing solid business, but not for me.

This seems pretty interesting, but I think I'll wait 'til the open beta is in swing before getting stuck in much more. The idea of my characters being wiped does dampen my enthusiasm to play somewhat.

Redwing wrote:

This seems pretty interesting, but I think I'll wait 'til the open beta is in swing before getting stuck in much more. The idea of my characters being wiped does dampen my enthusiasm to play somewhat.

You have no choice, beta is over until Open Beta anyways

Having the guardian pack (bought) as well as the Founder's Pack (won) applied to my account, I'm ready to play and swim in a sea of Astral Diamonds

DeThroned wrote:

You have no choice, beta is over until Open Beta anyways

Well that solves that problem.

I played NWN 1 & 2 to death back in the day. So, I bought a founder's pack. After playing a bit over the weekend, it just doesn't do it for me. Graphics were very disappointing, NWN 1 had better graphics, hopefully they're just "beta" graphics and will get turned up at launch. But, the gameplay seemed like a major step back too, with old tyme quests, stand-still combat (I played the cleric), limited class customization (I like a melee cleric, but I can only be a caster), etc. That's too bad. Did I miss something? Please tell me I did.

I guess playing GW2 has transformed what I expect from a new MMO. Oh well, SWTOR has their new expansion out this week.

TAZ89 wrote:

I played NWN 1 & 2 to death back in the day. So, I bought a founder's pack. After playing a bit over the weekend, it just doesn't do it for me. Graphics were very disappointing, NWN 1 had better graphics, hopefully they're just "beta" graphics and will get turned up at launch. But, the gameplay seemed like a major step back too, with old tyme quests, stand-still combat (I played the cleric), limited class customization (I like a melee cleric, but I can only be a caster), etc. That's too bad. Did I miss something? Please tell me I did.

I guess playing GW2 has transformed what I expect from a new MMO. Oh well, SWTOR has their new expansion out this week.

You might have missed that Neverwinter is based on D&D's 4th edition ruleset, which completely changed everything about D&D. And the fires of that argument are still burning hotly, so I won't rehash my feelings on the 4th edition changes. Additionally, I'm with you on this - I love a melee cleric. I'm hoping that Crytpic will add more classes as time goes on. I know that the way they've named the classes implies that there are many changes coming. For example, they released the Great Weapon Fighter and the Guardian Fighter. Both are technically Fighters, but they do what they do differently.

The game isn't a direct port of D&D either, for better or worse. I loved the fact that DDO made a nearly direct port of D&D 3rd edition to an online environment. I wish that Cryptic had done the same with 4th edition. A LOT of the mechanics are directly from 4th edition (At-Will Powers, Daily Powers, Feats, etc.) but the math and equipment is simply not there. If I want to give my 4th edition cleric a shield, I can do so. He'll lose out on some of the powers that rely on a focus though. And I think the complications of dealing with the variety of equipment choices is probably what drove Cryptic to do the equipment how they've done it. It's reminiscent of Everquest in a way. Not every EQ class could use the same sword, even though by god they're all swords.