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| | Publisher: MacSoft  Genre: Adventure & RPG Expansion For: Neverwinter Nights | | | Min OS X: Any Version CPU: G4 @ 450 MHz RAM: 256 MB Graphics: 32 MB VRAM |
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Neverwinter Nights: Hordes of the Underdark
September 14, 2004 | Dustin Smith | |
Oh, Deekin. You Rascally Kobold! I’m not going to say much about the sound because there really isn’t much to say. All of the new areas have new music and the ambient background noises add greatly to the atmosphere of the area. I actually found the battle music really annoying because it seems too epic for what I was doing at the time. If I force attacked a rat it would perform that same epic music that is all too common in the NWN games, and I know it was unnecessary to force attack a rat but I was trying to show a friend and I found it was quite humorous. There was a time when you start of in the Silver Marches, the first area of SoU, where the music changed, just once, but it was a noticeable change from the original battle music. Strangely enough it was when I was fighting a black bear. So it wasn’t really too difficult of a battle but the music changed, which was nice on the ears. If there are those of you out there that feel the same way I do the battle music does change once you are in the Underdark, and let me just say that the music is not only a nice change but very cool as well.The sound is still incredibly well done though, and for the most part you can hear it in the voice acting. All of the voices fit well with their character model and portrait. The award for most annoying but humorous voice though goes to Deekin, the kobold bard. The henchmen will start to say random things as you wander around and Deekin, being another henchman is not exception. The kobold bard’s goal is to try to write a book about your adventures, and then while wandering around he starts spouting out these one liners that actually made me chuckle more than once. Things like, “The intrepid adventurers wander through the dangerous Underdark and Deekin wonder why there aren’t more cats…” Just random and unexpected things like that make me laugh, though. Some people might find it annoying I found it rather humorous. One? Nah. Both? Definitely. With all of those new classes, feats, skills, spells, and enemies I mentioned, not to mention the new personalities of the variety of henchmen you will encounter and well done locales it’s not a wonder when I say that I was immensely entertained and will be for many weeks to come. But I do offer one piece of advice, if you are going to pick up one expansion…don’t. Pick up both of them at the same time, for instance at the IMG store which is selling both for $54.90. I don’t think SoU by itself is really worth the $30 to shell out because all of the new advantages take place in HotU. I also don’t think that you will receive much enjoyment out of HotU by itself because of the many times near the beginning of the game that they keep referring to your past adventure in SoU.I think that you will be pleasantly surprised with the multitudes of changes in both games to warrant the time spent playing both of them back-to-back. There is also the online play aspect of the game trying to reach that level peak of 40. As always you may do what you will, and may your adventures in the land of Faerun be glorious and rewarding. Don’t worry though, they will.
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