Just last week, Neverwinter received Curse of Icewind Dale, the game’s third module. To keep up momentum, Perfect World and Cryptic Studios have announced Module 4: Tyranny of Dragons.
With details more scarce than a 21 on a d20, the only info we have is a late-summer release date – August 14th, 2014 – and this generic paragraph of what to expect:
After days of travel through forest and plains, your destination is now close at hand. Your contact back at the tavern was tight-lipped about specifics, but so far the map he sold you lines up with his tale as the cavern entrance lies at the foot of the mountain just as the X shows. Sure, he missed the minor parts like having to tramp through the undead-filled swamp or that the trading road he suggested went through raider territory but, if the treasure within is as great as he promised, it'll be worth the trouble. Those scorch marks and deeply cut grooves around the cave entrance are a bit troubling though...
Sure I could have just come out and said today's episode is about Dungeons and Dragons, but I'm a DM - I have to ham it up. I think it's in the Dungeon Master's Guide somewhere.
Last week we published the first part of ZAM's exclusive Neverwinter Q&A with Cryptic Studios COO Jack Emmert, learning about the direction and overall theme of the upcoming Dungeons & Dragons online multiplayer RPG. In the second part of our interview, Emmert explains why he's the right guy for this job and offers a frank response to some of the criticism he's received in recent interviews after talking about Cryptic's previous two MMOs, Champions Online and Star Trek Online. Read the second half of the Q&A after the jump, or check out the complete interview, now appended with the final part.
The gaming community received exciting news on Monday when Cryptic Studios announced its upcoming Neverwinter online multiplayer RPG, based on the hugely-popular Forgotten Realms campaign setting of the classic Dungeons & Dragons. In the official press release, Cryptic Studios COO Jack Emmert described Neverwinter as an online, cooperative PC-RPG based on the works of best-selling fantasy author R.A. Salvatore, a linchpin of Forgotten Realms lore.
Not to be confused as a direct sequel to the original Neverwinter Nights series of MMOs and video games, Cryptic's upcoming title is more like a modern reboot with hybrid gameplay. In interviews earlier this week, Emmert was quick to point out that Neverwinter isn't a traditional MMO, despite sharing some MMO-like features such as persistent zones and group play. In homage of the original series, Cryptic is also developing a set of tools—tentatively dubbed the "Forge" system—that will allow players to build their own adventures and share that user-generated content with others.
To help us understand the scope and direction of Neverwinter, ZAM got in touch with Cryptic this week and spoke with Emmert in a phone interview. We asked him to describe the co-op gameplay and "persistent" aspects in more detail, as well as the capability and function of the "Forge" system and user-generated content. In today's first installment of our two-part Neverwinter interview, we start with game mechanics. Does the system finally bring the real Dungeon Master experience to the realm of video games? Is the 4th edition D&D rule set a good thing in Neverwinter? How tactical will real-time, group combat be? Finally, in part two, Emmert explains why he's the right guy for this job and offers a frank response to some of the criticism he's received in recent interviews after talking about Cryptic's previous two MMOs, Champions Online and Star Trek Online. Sit back, relax and read today's first installment after the jump. Keep an eye out for the second part of our Neverwinter Q&A later this weekend!
