Next month, Obsidian and Atari release Neverwinter Nights 2: Storm of Zehir, the second expansion pack for the game that adds a number of new features, missions, monsters and more to the game. Big Download got a chance to ask the lead designer of the game. Obsidian's Tony Evans, some questions about what they will be presenting with Storm of Zehir.
First, how does it feel for Obsidian to return to the Neverwinter franchise again for a second expansion pack?
It feels like Christmas is coming a month early! At the considerable risk of sounding corny... I can't wait to smell that fresh Storm of Zehir box. For a game developer, the only thing that comes close to that "newly released game box" smell is the scent of wrapping paper and Scotch tape sitting under a tree. And, now that we've gone beyond corny and are sledding headlong into mushy, I feel compelled to expand this analogy further... The feeling of releasing Storm of Zehir is like having poured a lot of time, thought and heart into handcrafting the perfect gift for that special someone – in this case, that special someone is YOU, the gamer – and now we wait in eager anticipation to see your eyes light up when you un-wrap our gift to you. If only we could ship Storm of Zehir decked with boughs of holly...
What were the dev team's main goals in making Storm of Zehir?
Our main goal was to make it to the end of the project without any human casualties. So far, so good...
Secondarily, we wanted to make the type of game we would want to play, Many of us at Obsidian Entertainment have fond memories of old school role playing games and series such as Ultima, Might and Magic, Wizardry, Final Fantasy, Darklands, the original Pool of Radiance, and Fallout 1 and 2.
If you played any of these games, you might agree that, though modern role playing games have grown in budget and added prettier graphics and lots of shiny bells and whistles, certain things have been lost to all but nostalgia along the way...
By blending tried and true classic role-playing elements with modern game features and graphics, and adding some new, unique touches of our own Storm of Zehir is aiming to make old school the new school.
What can you tell us about the storyline for the expansion?
The storyline begins with your party sailing the seas from the Sword Coast to a land called Chult, in the southern part of the Forgotten Realms. After your ship is sabotaged, your party and the other survivors find themselves stranded on the shores of the xenophobic nation of Samarach. Soon you are arrested by these incredibly rude Samarachan guards. They take you to their leader, who is ready to behead you on suspicion of being a spy, or worse, an agent of the yuan-ti, a mysterious race of reptilian humanoids who attempt to infiltrate societies and take them over from within. This is especially ironic considering that in Storm of Zehir, one or more of your four party members can be a yuan-ti!
Anyhow, you are spared from execution by a powerful and beautiful merchant lady, who commissions you to discover who sabotaged the ship, as well as discover what happened to the cargo which disappeared from the wreckage. As you pursue her goals, you'll be drawn further into the storyline, but keep in mind that not everyone is who they seem to be at first glance....
Of course, there's plenty more to the game than just the main storyline; there are numerous adventure areas and towns to explore, each with optional quests and stories to discover.
What new races can we expect to see in the expansion?
One of the new playable races is the gray orc, which is a nomadic, shamanistic orc tribe that isn't quite as savage as their more famous orc cousins. They're a bit better at using divine spellcasting classes than normal orcs are. There's also the yuan-ti pureblood class. The purebloods are a part of the yuan-ti society that can pass for human, by use of either magic or mascara. These are the agents that the yuan-ti employ to infiltrate kingdoms and subtly conquer them from within.
It feels like Christmas is coming a month early! At the considerable risk of sounding corny... I can't wait to smell that fresh Storm of Zehir box. For a game developer, the only thing that comes close to that "newly released game box" smell is the scent of wrapping paper and Scotch tape sitting under a tree. And, now that we've gone beyond corny and are sledding headlong into mushy, I feel compelled to expand this analogy further... The feeling of releasing Storm of Zehir is like having poured a lot of time, thought and heart into handcrafting the perfect gift for that special someone – in this case, that special someone is YOU, the gamer – and now we wait in eager anticipation to see your eyes light up when you un-wrap our gift to you. If only we could ship Storm of Zehir decked with boughs of holly...
What were the dev team's main goals in making Storm of Zehir?
Our main goal was to make it to the end of the project without any human casualties. So far, so good...
Secondarily, we wanted to make the type of game we would want to play, Many of us at Obsidian Entertainment have fond memories of old school role playing games and series such as Ultima, Might and Magic, Wizardry, Final Fantasy, Darklands, the original Pool of Radiance, and Fallout 1 and 2.
If you played any of these games, you might agree that, though modern role playing games have grown in budget and added prettier graphics and lots of shiny bells and whistles, certain things have been lost to all but nostalgia along the way...
By blending tried and true classic role-playing elements with modern game features and graphics, and adding some new, unique touches of our own Storm of Zehir is aiming to make old school the new school.
What can you tell us about the storyline for the expansion?
The storyline begins with your party sailing the seas from the Sword Coast to a land called Chult, in the southern part of the Forgotten Realms. After your ship is sabotaged, your party and the other survivors find themselves stranded on the shores of the xenophobic nation of Samarach. Soon you are arrested by these incredibly rude Samarachan guards. They take you to their leader, who is ready to behead you on suspicion of being a spy, or worse, an agent of the yuan-ti, a mysterious race of reptilian humanoids who attempt to infiltrate societies and take them over from within. This is especially ironic considering that in Storm of Zehir, one or more of your four party members can be a yuan-ti!
Anyhow, you are spared from execution by a powerful and beautiful merchant lady, who commissions you to discover who sabotaged the ship, as well as discover what happened to the cargo which disappeared from the wreckage. As you pursue her goals, you'll be drawn further into the storyline, but keep in mind that not everyone is who they seem to be at first glance....
Of course, there's plenty more to the game than just the main storyline; there are numerous adventure areas and towns to explore, each with optional quests and stories to discover.
What new races can we expect to see in the expansion?
One of the new playable races is the gray orc, which is a nomadic, shamanistic orc tribe that isn't quite as savage as their more famous orc cousins. They're a bit better at using divine spellcasting classes than normal orcs are. There's also the yuan-ti pureblood class. The purebloods are a part of the yuan-ti society that can pass for human, by use of either magic or mascara. These are the agents that the yuan-ti employ to infiltrate kingdoms and subtly conquer them from within.
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Thanks for the interview. I've been eagerly anticipating this expansion since before it was announced. NWN2 was fantastic, MotB was great, and this looks to one up them both. The NWN2 series is the only time I can think of that I've really enjoyed multiplayer gaming. I have two buds who are old D&D nerds and we've had a blast with co-op-ing the series so far. The time we've spent with Guild Wars doesn't even come close. On top of that I'll eagerly dive in again single player so I can take my time with the story and player crafting. Keep up the great work Obsidian and keep up the great interviews BigDownload.
...bysmittyPosted at 2:49PM on Oct 22nd 2008 by bysmitty