Guard Dog

Exactly what I've been saying today!

I hope not because by the same logic you might say I don't have time to read a book over 300 pages. Neither is true. I did not read Shogun in one night and I never spent 60 consecutive hours in front of my computer.

Many console games defy your characterization of them all as being shallow/short. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Wouldn't own a console so I couldn't tell you. Another thing to think about for everyone upset about the estimated length. Oblivion is the RPG standard bearer right now, no arguments there right? You can complete Oblivion in less than 10 hours without even exceeding level 3 (and it has been done by a few gamers). Or you can play for weeks on end and finish the game over level 30. I suspect that NWN2 will be what you make of it much like Oblivion and... well everything else in life.

Where did you get that figure. Not being sarcastic, really curious. Looking at the download numbers of the Vault and Stratics and NWNPlanet, accounting for a majority of repeat customers (single users downloading more than one module) I'd have put that number much higher. Maybe as high as 35-40% . If a player downloads a single bit of content from a user made SP mod to joining a PW they have "used" the toolset even if they did not create that content. I really think more than 10% of NWN players have downloaded something.

Well, we still don't know NWN2 IS lacking. 20 good hours is better the 30 mediocre ones or 40 that is plainly 50% filler.

No argument there. The Bioware name was worth 500K copies, the D&D name woth 500K more. But I think you and I finally agree on something. If not for the "whole package" we would not be talking about it today 4 years after release.

As usual Volo, I disagree.

One thing I'd point out Grom is that you do not need to use the toolset to benefit from it. Without that there would have been no NWNVault and no 5000 modules to download for free. If even 50% of those 2 Million (and I account for two of them) gamers downloaded even one user made module, they benefited/used the toolset. Heck, Shadowlords/Dreamcatcher/Demon alone has been downloaded nearly a million times from the 4 websites that hosted them. Take that away and where would NWN be?

This is exactly what we were arguing about on the bioware board. Without the toolset and modding ability NWN would have been a dead flat failure that no one would be talking about today. It's graphics engine was below average, and it's OC was just terrible. Granated the two expansions were better but I bought them for the extra tilesets/creature/classes/ and toolset functionality. I will agree with you that MP was never a big deal, at least to me, but making and playing SP modules are what made that game. As I posted earlier, that is really all I (and a hell of a lot of others) care about for NWN2.

At the risk of reopening a 2 yr argument with Volurn, the 40 hr NWN1 campaign was really little more than a showcase of game content. The story ranged from all around bad at it's worst to simply uncompelling at it's best. The dialouge and charaters were poorly done. Obsidan's writing teams have produced some of the best charaters in any CRPG both at Obsidian and in other endeavors. In fact that was KOTOR2's only saving grace. I'd sooner take a 20 hour game that was complete and well fleshed out with good dialouge, characterization, and roleplaying elements, that a 40 hour game that brings back memories of the NWN OC. As another poster pointed out, NWN is really about the toolset. If the OC is a five hour hack and slash "fed ex" quest, I'd still buy the game for the toolset. And so should all of you. Heck I've got my first module laid out on over 120 pages of notes and I'll probably have at least 10 hours into building it before I even make my first OC character. If the OC stinks, maybe you'll like my mod better. If not then you can be certain there will be many and more some of which will surpass "professional" quality, just like NWN1. There are over 5000 modules on the NWN vault and granted, only 5% could credibly be called good. That is still 250 at an average of 2 hours a piece. You do the math. Mr Sawyer, you give us a complete, reletively bug free game with a working toolset and I'll be happy. If the OC happens to be good, thats just the icing on the cake.

Going off at a tangent here. Typically speaking, do developers realize a higher return on console games versus PC games? As a rule, which could be expected to sell more units? Actually are the two even statistically comparable? I read on the Bethesda forums that Morrowwind PC out sold the same console title at something like 3 to 1. Do you know (or can you say) how KOTOR2 for PC did versus the Xbox version? The reason I ask is that the root of these JE discussions (here and at the Bio boards) was that Bioware erred by not making a PC port of JE and cut their audience enough to hurt the game. I doubt that is the case and I also doubt that the JE project lost money but it's market performance seems to have been underwhelming to the folks in Edmonton and Redmond. Also, the desicion to make (or not) a PC port would be made by the publisher right? Anyone want to weigh in on these points?

After a near miss of a thread lock, we are aleady there.

My computer can handle RTW with huge unit sizes with most of the settings turned off. It's still nearing the end of it's life though at 3.5 years old. It was already low-midrange when I bought it. <_< Can't wait for the game anyway. Was there a projected release date given? I don't recall seeing anything about it. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> 4th Quarter this year. I'd bet on early December, late November. There was a big discussion on the TW boards as to what the next title would be. Most people wanted a M:TW remake. The other two that sounded good were Napolean:Total War and 1914:Total War. I hope they at least consider the other two ideas. Especialy 1914:TW.

It uses the R:TW engine, with probably a few graphic improvements. If you can play Rome I'd bet you can run Med 2. I'm already putting money aside for some upgrades. With Oblivion, NWN2, and Med 2 it sounds like at the least a new video card is coming.

If the entire graduating class could be wiped out by a handfull of weak goblins and a few lvl 1 mages they were not worth a crap and Neverwinter was screwed in any case.

Along that line I thought the Baldurs Gate concept was handled well. You live your whole life thinking you were ordinary the one day...Boom. I gather from reading the interviews the NWN2 protaganist is an "accidental hero". A person whom circumstance calls on to do great things and only becomes great by DOING these things. Am I far off?

Check out the next to last screenshot. The armor is reflecting the battle map background!

(w00t) New screenshots on the M:TW 2 website. Oh baby this game has bumped NWN 2 right out of my #1 most anticipated game spot. December cannot get here fast enough. Check out my OP for the link!

Yeah I know. I hadn't actually lost a battle though because of that mistake... " I only reloaded because I was so near the beginning. If I had been farther in I wouldn't have done so. I had three armies reinforcing my main stack which came under attack. Each army had a general in it. Each army was AI controlled. Each general decided to charge the enemy phalanx head on. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> I believe there is an AI tweak mod that prevents player AI cavalry from attempting headlong charges into phalanx units. You notice the AI opponent never does that so your AI controlled reserve should not either. But I also agree with alanschu, reloading after a critical mistake defeats the pupose of your experiment here. You are the battle general, if you err, your men die. Lee did not get to reload after he ordered Pickett to charge the center of the Union line at Gettysburg, and watched a 15,000 man division get cut to pieces.

Heh. Another one sucked back in. " <{POST_SNAPBACK}> You are doing well Deraldin. Keep the updates coming. Still trying to revive the Western Empire myself.

Excellent start! If you can take Messina I would put it to the torch, and recuit as many peasants as possible to boost the pop in Syracuse. Then abandon it when Marcus Scipii comes calling. There are over 400 Hastati in Capua by the 3rd turn. You should reach out to Pontus for an alliance as well as the Selucids. They are usually willing and it will solidify you security in Asia Minor. Attacking Corinth right off was a bold move. I like it. The big question is if the Brutii have hit Theramon yet. If so you might find yourself with your hands full.

The problem with Greek diplomacy is that the first two Senate Missions handed out are for the Scipii to attack Syracuse and the Brutii to attack Theramon. You are in a war with Rome like it or not. Macedon views you as a natural rival so forget an alliance with them. You can get one with Pontus and Carthage in the first turn for all the good that does. What difficulty do you use?

Not that I've been able to find. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> I sent you the file as boardmail Deraldin.

As long as you complete a campaign at all even a short one you can play the unlocked factions. I need to reinstall before I can go through as the romans. The stupid mod decided to boot me back to the menu even when choosing the romans. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> If you want to cheat to unlock the other factions quicker before every battle hit ~ to open the command shell and enter the command auto_win attacker or auto_win defender. You can win the short game with a few hundred peasants if you win every battle. If you want to unlock ALL of the factions, let me know and I'll explain it. You still have to win as the Romans at least once.

Let me know what your strategy was and how it worked out. I'd suggest you do Very Hard on campaign difficuty and Hard on battle difficulty.