A host of Neverwinter offerings served up in one big package of fun!
The game includes: the original Neverwinter Nights game, a 50+ hour adventure that sees you try to find the source of, and motivation for, a deadly plague unleashed on the town of Neverwinter; the Shadows of Undrentide, a 20-30 hour expansion adventure that sees you seeking missing artifacts and discovering who wanted them so badly, and to what end; and Hordes of the Underdark, a 30 hour+ expansion that places you mostly in the subterranean world of the Drow elves to stop a power hungry woman. Combined, they give you well over a hundred hours of gaming. Also included are some short mini-modules created by the game's development staff and the Aurora toolset, allowing you to create your own modules, and even a DM client, allowing you to host the module online, acting as the dungeon master while others play the scenarios.
The game's true major positive is not just the great attention to detail, but all the ways the detail is implemented. There's not just a few spells, but nearly all of them, even the ones that likely have little to no use except to the most creative of players. All the major races and character classes from the main game are represented, with every tiny rule, bonus, and penalty regarding their play from the pen-and-paper game faithfully duplicated. Add a staggering number of magic (and even non-magic) weapons, armor, and sundries, and the ways to enhance your power are only bound by your creativity in getting just the right set of items to maximize your potential.
Other positives include a better inventory management system than previous Bioware D&D games, and the new "radial menu," which allows easy access to all a player's powers by right-clicking and navigating through a circle-based menu system. The same system can be used to chose attack options by right-clicking an enemy. Combined with function key shortcuts and a massive 36 on-screen shortcuts (that can be used for weapon/shield combos, potion drinking, spell casting, or nearly anything else) often leave you with 4 or more ways to access the same power/ability. Henchmen's use of spells, magic items, and curative items is superb. The small doses of humor also add to the experience, and just reading the choices to make in conversations if you're being evil can be a hoot, even if you're never choosing them.
Negatives are few, and some are even addressed through the flow of the game. People used to the BG/ID games may gripe about not having total control over your henchman's inventory in the main game (their equipment upgrades as they increase levels), but as promised in the loading screen tips, the expansions do have that capability. The whole "henchmen can die, but if you do it's reload time" thing is frustrating, as if implying they can't pick up a Rod of Resurrection and use it on you as easily as you use it on them. I'll also warn that people who've never experienced the newer, 3rd edition D&D rules may be in for some system shock, as this game makes exclusive use of them and all their character customizing potential. Another small negative is the entire Shadows of Undrentide expansion, which while fun, is far too easy, with even the end boss a pushover. Luckily this is counterbalanced by the 2nd expansion, which is a tad better than the main game. Your henchmen also force small talk on you at times, which gets occassionally agitating, sometimes leaving you quickly figuring out how to escape the conversation quickly, but not so quickly that you anger them.
The gameplay's only negative is that there's almost too many options in some cases, sometimes leaving you wondering which of a dozen ways to tackle things might be best. You'll also occassionally find your henchmen not attacking who you'd like or guarding you quite the way you'd hoped. The graphics are gorgeous and the sounds are a notch below, especially given the slightly limited selection of battle fanfares that you'll be hearing in your dreams before long. The value is tops, as you'll likely be spending less than 40ยข per hour to pick this up. In conclusion, this is simply a fantastic game. Any RPG fan will be supremely happy making this purchase.