Neverwinter Nights 2: Mysteries of Westgate Review
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Meanwhile, game-changing add-on Storm of Zehir was released. Westgate incorporates none of its technical advances. So, despite mod-team-done-good Ossian's solid storyline and writing, the new content can't help but feel like a step backwards. Arriving in the glum city of Westgate (overriding color: brown, featured weather: rain), your character is burdened with a mysterious cursed mask. Time to go investigating. Yet although it's undroppable and apparently the cause of horrific nightmares, the mask quickly becomes nothing more than a harmless MacGuffin; there purely to drive the quest forward.
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The pacing problems carry over into the action: early confrontations quickly hit walls of difficulty that it can take an irritating degree of mid-battle party micro-management to scale. Later scraps, on the other hand, become strangely easy, with your foes unwilling to unload their best merchandise on you for fear of breaking it. Basing the action in a technically safe city, Ossian have also reduced the number of combat opportunities, making it harder to get a feel for the battling abilities of your cohorts. This, plus a willfully disobedient camera, ensures frustration hits regularly, detracting from the engaging main quest.
