Neverwinter (video Game)
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''Neverwinter'' is a
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massively multiplayer online role-playing game A massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) is a video game that combines aspects of a role-playing video game and a massively multiplayer online game. As in role-playing games (RPGs), the player assumes the role of a Player charac ...
developed by
Cryptic Studios Cryptic Studios is an American video game developer specializing in MMORPG, massively multiplayer online role-playing games. It is headquartered in Los Gatos, California, and was a wholly owned Perfect World (company), Perfect World subsidiary, a ...
for
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in 2013,
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in 2015, and
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in 2016. Based on the fictional ''
Forgotten Realms ''Forgotten Realms'' is a campaign setting for the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (''D&D'') fantasy role-playing game. Commonly referred to by players and game designers as "The Realms", it was created by game designer Ed Greenwood around 1967 as a setti ...
'' city of
Neverwinter Neverwinter is a fictional city-state in the ''Forgotten Realms'' campaign setting for the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' fantasy role-playing game. Neverwinter was founded by Lord Halueth Never. It sits on the northwestern coast of the subcontinent of ...
from ''
Dungeons & Dragons ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (commonly abbreviated as ''D&D'' or ''DnD'') is a fantasy tabletop role-playing game (TTRPG) originally created and designed by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson. The game was first published in 1974 by TSR (company)#Tactical ...
'', ''Neverwinter'' is a standalone game and not part of the previous ''Neverwinter Nights'' series.


Gameplay

Players can choose one of eight ''
Dungeons & Dragons ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (commonly abbreviated as ''D&D'' or ''DnD'') is a fantasy tabletop role-playing game (TTRPG) originally created and designed by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson. The game was first published in 1974 by TSR (company)#Tactical ...
''
character classes In tabletop games and video games, a character class is an occupation, profession, or role assigned to a game character to highlight and differentiate their capabilities and specializations. In role-playing games (RPGs), character classes ag ...
and form groups of up to five
player character A player character (also known as a playable character or PC) is a fictional Character (arts), character in a video game or tabletop role-playing game whose actions are controlled by a player rather than the rules of the game. The characters tha ...
s (PCs). ''Neverwinter'' was originally based on a modified version of the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' 4th edition rules set. This includes the use of healing powers and ''action points'', the latter of which is implemented through a system referred to as ''dailies'', allowing a player to perform a special ability by accumulating enough action points through combat. A player-created content system codenamed "Foundry" allows players to create their own stories and quests. By October 2011, the gameplay of ''Neverwinter'' was re-structured into a
free-to-play "Free-to-play" ("F2P" or "FtP") video games are games that give players access to a significant portion of their content for free. The term "free-to-play business model" or simply, "free-to-play model", refers collectively to business models tha ...
MMORPG A massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) is a video game that combines aspects of a role-playing video game and a massively multiplayer online game. As in role-playing games (RPGs), the player assumes the role of a Player charac ...
with extra items and other advantages available for purchase for a fee. In August 2014, the ''Tyranny of Dragons'' module was used to bridge the narrative gap between the game and the then recently released 5th Edition ''Dungeons & Dragons''. Many of the subsequent modules would have ties to 5th Edition ''Dungeons & Dragons'' storylines, such as ''Elemental Evil'', ''Storm King's Thunder'', ''Tomb of Annihilation'', ''Ravenloft'' and ''Undermountain''. By April 2019, all eight classes received varying levels of balance and adjustments and each class was renamed to align with 5th Edition ''Dungeons & Dragons''.


Plot


Characters and setting

The setting of ''Neverwinter'' takes place in a time when the eponymous city is plunged into chaos after the disappearance of the last Lord of
Neverwinter Neverwinter is a fictional city-state in the ''Forgotten Realms'' campaign setting for the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' fantasy role-playing game. Neverwinter was founded by Lord Halueth Never. It sits on the northwestern coast of the subcontinent of ...
. In the aftermath of the Spellplague and a Primordial Fire
Elemental An elemental is a mythic supernatural being that is described in occult and alchemy, alchemical works from around the time of the European Renaissance, and particularly elaborated in the 16th century works of Paracelsus. According to Paracelsu ...
's almost destroying Neverwinter, as seen in the novel ''
Gauntlgrym ''Gauntlgrym'' is a fantasy novel by American writer R. A. Salvatore set in the Forgotten Realms campaign setting; it is the first book in the Neverwinter Saga. Released in October 2010, it follows the continued adventures of drow elf renegade ...
'', the remaining citizens form factions and struggle for dominance over the populace as the dead begin to rise and attack "the city they once called home". The player is investigating the Sect Crown of Neverwinter and trying to figure out what the skeletons and another mysterious group are looking for. The included locations are based on the novels ''Gauntlgrym'', ''
Neverwinter Neverwinter is a fictional city-state in the ''Forgotten Realms'' campaign setting for the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' fantasy role-playing game. Neverwinter was founded by Lord Halueth Never. It sits on the northwestern coast of the subcontinent of ...
'', and '' Charon's Claw''. Players are also able to create whole new locations that may or may not conform to the lore on which the rest of the game is based. This content is clearly distinguished so as not to confuse users, and they are informed whether they are playing user-generated or official content.


Story

Briefly assuming her pre-
lich In fantasy fiction, a lich () is a type of undead creature with magical powers. Various works of fantasy fiction, such as Clark Ashton Smith's " The Empire of the Necromancers" (1932), had used ''lich'' as a general term for any corpse, animat ...
appearance, the Lich Queen Valindra attacks the soldiers of New Neverwinter, as new grounds are being built outside of the original city, which is being repaired. Valindra's actions spark the Battle of the Bridge, in which Barrabus the Gray (formerly known as
Artemis Entreri ''Forgotten Realms'' is a campaign setting for the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (''D&D'') fantasy role-playing game. Commonly referred to by players and game designers as "The Realms", it was created by game designer Ed Greenwood around 1967 as a settin ...
) and
Drizzt Do'Urden Drizzt Do'Urden () is a fictional character appearing in the Forgotten Realms campaign setting for the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' fantasy role-playing game. Drizzt was created by author R. A. Salvatore as a supporting character in the '' Icewind D ...
are rumored to be present by gossipers at a pub in the shattered town of Luskan. Each soldier tells his own story of the battle until one soldier reveals that Valindra's attack was going badly until the blue dragon, Fulminorax, a leader in the country of Thay, helped her escape. The soldier finishes by asking the people where they will be and what they will be doing when the dragon attacks again. After their ship is sunk by a dracolich, adventurers help a nearby militia of Neverwinter against Valindra. While not confronting her directly on the Sleeping Dragon Bridge, the heroes fight a Harbinger, a huge humanoid
undead The undead are beings in mythology, legend, or fiction that are deceased but behave as if they were alive. A common example of an undead being is a cadaver, corpse reanimated by supernatural forces, by the application of either the deceased's o ...
, then go to Protector's Enclave to tell a Sergeant about what happened. For their valor, the adventurers become the Heroes of the Sleeping Bridge. Learning that the Nashers took advantage of Valindra's attack, the heroes track them to the Blacklake District. There they fight a chosen of Ghaunadaur and Nasher leader Karzov. With the Nasher Rebellion ended, the Heroes head to the Cloak Tower and defeat Vansi Bloodscar, an orcish commander from the Kingdom of Many-Arrows. Sent to help Dorothea Linkletter, the spellscarred wife of Josef Linkletter, the Heroes learn the wizard Rhazzad has sacrificed all the spellscarred victims he hid from Helm's Hold. Learning Rhazzad's masters to be in the Chasm, the heroes defeat the wizard when he turns into a plague-changed monstrosity. Forced to delay going after Rhazzad's masters, the Heroes are put in contact with the Harpers to fight against Malus and Traven Blackdagger. Learning the Blackdagger brothers to have been turned undead by the Thayan
necromancer Necromancy () is the practice of magic involving communication with the dead by summoning their spirits as apparitions or visions for the purpose of divination; imparting the means to foretell future events and discover hidden knowledge. ...
Kallos Tam, the Heroes defeat the pirates and Valindra's agent. Learning the Red Wizard of Thay Xivros plans to raise Arleos the Unforgiven, the Heroes are unable to stop the resurrection but do put down the monster when it rises. The heroes also learn that in another part of Neverdeath Graveyard, Valindra defeated the Cult of the Dragon over the dracolich Azharzel. The Spellplague victims then become a priority again as the Prophet of Helm's Hold has been revealed to be a
succubus A succubus () is a female demon who is described in various folklore as appearing in the dreams of male humans in order to seduce them. Repeated interactions between a succubus and a man will lead to sexual activity, a bond forming between them, ...
called Rohini. With the Ashmadai active in Neverwinter, the Heroes raid the fortress, defeat Rohini and slay her green dragon Chartilifax. When the Barrow Lords and the Netherese necromancer Idris raised the dead of Ebon Downs, the Heroes of the Sleeping Bridge were dispatched and defeated the undead. When the Uthgardt barbarians under the Netherese began to hunt down the Forsworn, the Heroes decided to put an end to the Netherese menace. Stopping Netheril's plans with Xin'Kar, a piece of the Enclave Xinlenal, the Heroes defeated the Uthgardt chieftain and Netherese forces. Joining forces with Company Yargo, the Heroes then took down another Blackdagger Pirate, the undead Bartholomew Blackdagger. Aiding the Icehammer Dwarves, the Heroes proceeded to slay the
Frost Giant Frost is a thin layer of ice on a solid surface, which forms from water vapor that deposits onto a freezing surface. Frost forms when the air contains more water vapor than it can normally hold at a specific temperature. The process is similar ...
Hrimnir and destroy the Winterforge. When the Chasm is threatened by the Order of the Blue Fire, the Heroes finally begin to finish off another loose end: Rhazzad's masters. Heading down the Chasm, the Heroes find A'Drx'l, the Aboleth that was guiding Rhazzad, and slay it. When
Drow The drow ( or ) or dark elves are a dark-skinned and white-haired subrace of Elf (Dungeons & Dragons), elves connected to the Subterranea (geography), subterranean Underdark in the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' fantasy roleplaying game. The drow have t ...
slavers from House Xorlarrin began appearing and creating a settlement called New Xorlarrin, the Heroes set out to stop them and put an end to their fledgling designs. In doing so, they learned that the Drow Goddess
Lolth The drow ( or ) or dark elves are a dark-skinned and white-haired subrace of elves connected to the subterranean Underdark in the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' fantasy roleplaying game. The drow have traditionally been portrayed as generally evil and c ...
was trying to take over magic. While the Xorlarrins retreat, the Heroes defeat the Fire Giant Gommoth and red dragon Karrundax. The Xorlarrins retake the abandoned city of Zesraena and fight the Heroes at the Doors of Delzoun in a losing effort. Learning of the Xorlarrin alliance with Illithids, the Heroes fight the
Mind Flayer In the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' fantasy role-playing game, illithids (commonly known as mind flayers) are monstrous humanoid ''aberrations'' with psionic powers. In a typical ''Dungeons & Dragons'' campaign setting, they live in the moist caverns ...
s and their
Duergar The Simonside Dwarfs, also known as Brownmen, Bogles and Duergar, are in English folklore a race of dwarfs, particularly associated with the Simonside Hills of Northumberland, in northern England. Their leader was said to be known as ''Heslop' ...
thralls, eventually entering a structure known as the Iron Heart to defeat Yshiggol. With their strength grown, the Heroes of the Sleeping Bridge decide to end the destructive conflict between Neverwinter and Thay by targeting Valindra Shadowmantle directly. Entering Castle Never, the Heroes fight through hordes of undead and Valindra's most powerful soldiers. Eventually confronting the Lich Queen directly, they defeat her and her dracolich Ahzarzel.


The Storm King/Icewind Dale

Ice begins to reach south, threatening to wipe out all life in the Dalelands and harm the City. Bryn Shandar comes under attack from hundreds of Frost Giants at the front of an apocalyptic blizzard, freezing the city and turning many of the inhabitants to ice. Artus Cimber arrives and claims that the weather and problems are being caused by the Ring of Winter, which was stolen from him, and that if the heroes can help him find it, he'll be able to reverse the events. The heroes attempt to sneak into Fangbreaker Keep aboard a Frost Giant ship, but are discovered and are forced to flee. Makos stays behind to cover their escape, and is killed by a Frost Giant. Wulfgar and Cattie-brie recover his body and his is cremated upon return to Bryn Shandar, as Celeste tried and failed to resurrect him. Cimbar tracks the Ring further north to Cold Run, and the Keep of the Frost Giant King. Upon a Trial, the group of heroes attack the Frost Giant king. Upon his defeat, he attempts to draw more power from the Ring, which backfires and turns him to ice.


The Jungles of Chult

Neverwinter comes under a death curse. The people of the Sword Coast are dying, although this does not affect any characters not a part of the plot. a mysterious character, later proven to be Makos, proposes that Chult may hold the answer. The player forms a party consisting of various characters in previous adventures including Minsc, Boo, Volo, and Celeste. Arriving in Chult, the group's ship is destroyed by dragon turtle after Volo refuses its demand for payment to enter its waters. Celeste, Cleric of Selûne, is killed by the Batiri, a kobold-like species that inhabit Chult. Finding her body, Makos has her returned to life by a Chultan witch doctor called Nani Pupu by sacrificing a Batiri. This does not resurrect Celeste, however, and she is returned as an undead version to her horror as undead are considered unnatural by her deity. This deviates slightly from established lore where Selûne had been the goddess of the moon and lycanthropy, but none of the source books through the fifth edition list Selûne as having a particular edict against undead.


The Cloaked Ascendancy

Following completion of the main storyline, Lord Neverember reopens the River District. In the middle of the ceremony, the Nashers, led by three powerful wizards, attack the procession and overrun the rebuilt section of the city, dividing it between themselves with the plan to eventually assault the city proper.


New Sharandar

Sharandar, destroyed by numerous attacks, is refounded in a new location. Despite efforts to hide, the Fomori launch an assault on the new elven homeland.


Barovia


Descent to Avernus

Zariel, Lady of the First Layer of the Nine Hells, captures large swathes of land and drags them into the Hells, intending to use the inhabitants as cannon fodder in the eternal Blood war. The Adventures enter Avernus through the estate of Vallenhas, whose family made a deal with the Demons in order to spare their family. Entering fragments of Zariels memories, they learn Zariel was overpowered in a failed attack on Hell, and was corrupted and turned into an Arch Devil. Entering the Bleeding Citadel, they find Zariel's divine sword. Using her sword to draw Zariel out of her flying fortress, Zariel is overpowered, and after her defeat, accepts an offer of redemption and resumes her angelic form, and takes command of the Citadel as a temporary beachhead to launch attacks into Avernus.


The Dragonbone Valley

Lich Queen Valindra, having restored herself after her defeat at Neverwinter, attempts to create a Mythal, an incredibly powerful form of ritual magic, that will turn every dragon in Faerun into a dracolich. The adventurer receives a plea from Elminster to come and support the Grand Alliance to stop the Thayans and Valindra. After collecting a handful of artifacts to reach the ritual site, Elminster and the dragon Galanthaxsis interrupt the ritual at the last moment, causing it to detonate and obliterate a chunk of the valley.


Development and release

Atari Atari () is a brand name that has been owned by several entities since its inception in 1972. It is currently owned by French holding company Atari SA (formerly Infogrames) and its focus is on "video games, consumer hardware, licensing and bl ...
bought
Cryptic Studios Cryptic Studios is an American video game developer specializing in MMORPG, massively multiplayer online role-playing games. It is headquartered in Los Gatos, California, and was a wholly owned Perfect World (company), Perfect World subsidiary, a ...
in the fall of 2009. In late August 2010, Atari announced ''Neverwinter'', to be developed by Cryptic Studios, with a release scheduled for late 2011. By May 2011, Atari was in the process of selling Cryptic Studios, stating that development of ''Neverwinter'' would continue as normal, but only for the time being. The game was first publicly displayed at
E3 2011 The Electronic Entertainment Expo 2011 (E3 2011) was the 17th E3 held. The event took place at the Los Angeles Convention Center in Los Angeles, California. It began on June 7, 2011, and ended on June 9, 2011, with 46,800 total attendees. E3 20 ...
, where many details about the game were revealed. The game was originally scheduled to be released as a cross media event coinciding with the release of a series of
four books The Four Books and Five Classics are authoritative and important books associated with Confucianism, written before 300 BC. They are traditionally believed to have been either written, edited or commented by Confucius or one of his disciples. S ...
by fantasy author R.A. Salvatore and a
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from
Wizards of the Coast Wizards of the Coast LLC (WotC or Wizards) is an American game Publishing, publisher, most of which are based on fantasy and List of science fiction themes, science-fiction themes, and formerly an operator of retail game stores. In 1999, toy ...
. Laura Tommervik, a member of Wizards of the Coast marketing team, explained that they used ''Neverwinter'' as the connective tissue across multiple product categories as part of the transmedia campaign for fans to experience the brand they choose to. Due to Cryptic's acquisition by
Perfect World Entertainment Arc Games Inc. (formerly known as Perfect World Entertainment and Gearbox Publishing San Francisco), is an American video game publisher. Founded in 2008 as the North American branch of the Chinese company Perfect World, they currently operate ...
, ''Neverwinter'' was delayed to 2012. Perfect World also bought the rights to publish the game from Atari, coinciding with the conclusion of Atari's lawsuit with Wizards of the Coast on the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' license. By October, ''Neverwinter'' was shifted from the co-operative multiplayer game into a free-to-play MMORPG, which further delayed the game to late 2012. Perfect World would later again delay ''Neverwinter'' into early 2013 to better polish the game. Prior to releasing major details on the game, Perfect World launched a viral marketing campaign called the "Siege of Neverwinter", featuring videos from the game's story. The game was at
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(Pax) East 2012, where it was awarded Best of Show by MMORPG.com. In the same month of showing at PAX East, it also appeared at
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, where it showed off its Events feature, and
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Indy, where it let attendees try out early version drow race characters. The game's campaign was revealed to feature sixty levels. The game ran closed
beta test The software release life cycle is the process of developing, testing, and distributing a software product (e.g., an operating system). It typically consists of several stages, such as pre-alpha, alpha, beta, and release candidate, before the fi ...
ing from February 8 to April 14, 2013, before open beta began on April 30. Shannon Appelcline, author of the ''Designers & Dragons'' series, wrote that the "'' Neverwinter Campaign Setting'' was launched as 4e's first major multimedia release — a marketing approach that Wizards would regularly use in later years. It was closely tied to a series of four novels, a comic book, two different computer games, and even a board game. ..Two more Neverwinter computer games were appearing thanks to Wizards' 'transmedia' campaign. A new MMORPG simply called "Neverwinter" was to be the center of the Neverwinter rollout, but was delayed for two years due to the resolution of a computer gaming lawsuit and the subsequent sale of the developer, Cryptic Studios. ..''Neverwinter'' (2013) finally appears only after the rest of the launch. It continues to be supported to this day and has participated in some of D&D 5e's multimedia rollouts". In June 2018, Cryptic Studios revealed that over the course of five years: * "The near 18 million players amount to 775 times the population of Neverwinter". * "Players have died 202 million times". * "The deadliest dungeon is the Temple of Lostmauth". * The most popular race is humans followed by Tieflings. * The most popular class is Great Weapon Fighter followed by Trickster Rogue and Hunter Ranger. * 63 million monsters have been killed including more than 6.5 million dragons.


Modules

''Neverwinter'' has released multiple updates to the game called modules. Modules were released first on the PC, and then later to consoles. With ''Northdark Reaches'', the modules were released simultaneously on PC, Xbox, and PlayStation.


Reception

''Neverwinter'' has attained a score of 74/100 from aggregate review website
Metacritic Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...
.


Microsoft Windows

In 2013, Daniel Tack of ''
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'' wrote: "''Neverwinter'' offers experiences for players that normally wouldn't play MMORPGs, and also provides a framework for core genre players. Looking for action and adventure in the world of Forgotten Realms? ''Neverwinter'' delivers". Stephanie Carmichael, for ''
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'' in the same year, wrote that "it may have its flaws, but ''Neverwinter'' is highly enjoyable and accessible to veteran, beginner, and casual players alike".


Xbox One

In 2015, the ''
Polygon In geometry, a polygon () is a plane figure made up of line segments connected to form a closed polygonal chain. The segments of a closed polygonal chain are called its '' edges'' or ''sides''. The points where two edges meet are the polygon ...
'' review reported that "''Neverwinter'' on Xbox One manages to map heroes' abilities effortlessly across the controller, in a scheme that feels great both in and out of combat. Unfortunately, other aspects of the port totally miss the mark; in terms of performance, ''Neverwinter'' on Xbox One can really take a dive". In the same year, Boston Blake, for ''GameRant'', wrote that "''Neverwinter'' is the first true MMO for Xbox One, and it delivers well on that premise" and "despite its PvP shortcomings and current framrate issues, ''Neverwinter'' proves to be a solid MMO for Xbox One owners. Although it's certainly not a hardcore MMORPG, it's a fantastic starting point for console gamers or those who have little experience in the genre. Those who venture through the game will discover an enjoyable and challenging adventure that keeps their attention, provides plenty of unique experiences, and keeps them coming back for more".


PlayStation 4

In 2016, Ryan Winslett, for ''CinemaBlend'', wrote that "since ''Neverwinter'' has proven to be a solid action MMO, you really have nothing to lose by giving it a shot". In the same year, Jason Bohn, for ''Hardcore Gamer'', wrote: "Taking on a review of a title the size and scope of Cryptic Studio's ''Neverwinter'' is a daunting process, to put it mildly. The thing is just gigantic". He also added that "for no cost (not even a PlayStation Plus subscription is required), players can jump in and play one of the best MMORPGs available on the market at any price point today".


References


External links


Official website

Official wiki
{{Gearbox Software 2013 video games Cryptic Studios games Fantasy massively multiplayer online role-playing games Forgotten Realms video games Free-to-play video games Instanced massively multiplayer online role-playing games PlayStation 4 games Role-playing video games Video games developed in the United States Windows games Xbox One games