The MMORPG Neverwinter (PC, PS4, Xbox One) is soon celebrating its sixth birthday. Time to see if the free online game is still fun in 2019. Many adventure modules have significantly expanded the story and game world, but time is taking its toll on the D&D classic. We test Neverwinter in our Mein-MMO review.
The review has been fundamentally revised on 5.2.2019.
What Neverwinter Offers
What is Neverwinter? The MMORPG Neverwinter places you in the Forgotten Realms, the classic D&D fantasy world par excellence. The focus is on story and quests as well as exploring large game areas. Additionally, the game offers a unique feature: through the Foundry editor, it is possible to create your own adventures that other players can then experience. Neverwinter is playable on PC, Playstation 4, and Xbox One.
- Quests: Neverwinter offers a variety of quests that guide you through numerous areas. The quests tell an ongoing story that is continuously expanded and where you get to know the Forgotten Realms more closely.
- Dungeons & Dragons feeling: Neverwinter creates an atmosphere as if you were sitting with friends around an exciting round of Pen & Paper D&D and experiencing adventures as a team.
- Very good group play: The classes are well balanced and allow for good functionality in groups. Therefore, playing in a well-coordinated party is especially fun.
- Constant expansions: Last November saw the release of The Heart of Fire, the now 15th expansion of the MMORPG. The development team regularly works on new content and continues to provide fans with new content and stories.
- Dungeons and instances: The highlights of Neverwinter include the large dungeons and group instances. Mastering these and defeating the boss enemies as a team provides powerful loot and a lot of fun.
- Foundry: Neverwinter offers players the opportunity to create their own quests using the Foundry editor. These can then be offered to other players. This ensures a constant stream of new adventures.
Neverwinter is on one hand a representative of classic MMORPGs, but offers a gaming experience that is more oriented towards D&D Pen & Paper game nights. The many contents ensure a very long duration of fun.
How Good is Neverwinter
Neverwinter is no longer the youngest MMORPG. You can tell that from the presentation of the game. However, the game manages to compensate for the slight aging weaknesses in the visuals with plenty of quests and many stories. It is primarily the story that drives the game.
The city of Neverwinter and its surroundings are repeatedly targeted by dark forces. Therefore, as heroes, you have your hands full dealing with these threats. You will talk to NPCs in many areas, who will tell you more about the current situation and assign you missions. These missions lead you to diverse areas such as the sewers beneath the city, enchanted forests, deep dungeons, the snowy Icewind Dale, and even the jungles of Chult, where massive dinosaurs await you. With the module “Ravenloft”, a visit to a horror dimension was on the agenda.
The quests often follow a similar pattern, which can lead to a lack of variety over time. You explore the game area, fight against the creatures there, and at the end, you usually face a boss enemy for whom you need to devise a special strategy. In between, you solve the occasional switch puzzle or talk to an NPC who provides additional clues.
Even though the quests lack variety over time, there is always plenty to do, and the excitement remains due to the tactical fights. After each mission, you feel like you have achieved something and made progress. Either you find cooler equipment or you level up and gain new, more powerful skills. Equipped this way, you can happily dive into the next adventure.
Due to the way the quests build on each other and how they tell an epic story this way, you get the feeling of being an important part of the world. It’s like participating in a D&D Pen & Paper session with good friends. The story unfolds in bite-sized pieces, sometimes larger, sometimes smaller, but ultimately they form a big whole that convinces in terms of fun and excitement.
The Story Moves Forward and On…
In Neverwinter, fans can rely on a continuous quality and a progressing story. 15 expansions have already been released over the past five years, but that is not the end.
The developers know exactly what fans want – new quests, new game areas, and a continuation of the story. Playing Neverwinter is like reading a good fantasy book series that keeps going. The heroes experience new adventures and face further challenges. Therefore, it is enjoyable to return to the world with each newly released adventure module to see what threat is to be contained next.
The developers also do a pretty good job in the way the story is told. It can happen that beloved NPCs die during the course of a narrative…
An Endless Stream of New Content
An extraordinary feature of Neverwinter is the Foundry Editor, which is only available for the PC version of the MMORPG.
- Foundry allows you to create your own missions through an editor. Here you can unleash your creativity and then offer these quests to other players.
- Foundry quests represent additional content that can fill the waiting time for official updates and expansions.
- There are certain rules to follow when creating quests, including restrictions on rewards to prevent abuse of the system.
- With Foundry quests, you can earn additional rewards and improve your hero outside of the regular quests.
- The Foundry Editor and thus the Foundry quests are only available for the PC version due to technical issues with the editor.
The Game Systems – Classic but Unmodern
Neverwinter plays classically. Eight classes, divided into typical patterns of Tank – Damage Dealer – and Healer, show that Neverwinter does not make great leaps to be innovative. The battles also feel familiar and MMO-like, with the difference that you have to click actively for strikes. You select an opponent and then use the “Hotbar” to deploy your learned skills.
Your hero levels up over time by defeating monsters and completing quests, earning experience points. This way, you can choose new skills that will help you in the more difficult missions.
Equipment also plays an important role, which is why you are always on the lookout for loot. Crafting is possible but does not represent a real focus in the MMO – even though the crafting system was fundamentally revised some time ago and is definitely more fun than before. Thus, the systems of Neverwinter are classic but somewhat lacking in innovation and no longer feel very modern.
What About PvP?
PvP is also possible in Neverwinter. However, it does not form the core of the MMO, and you can clearly see that. PvP takes place in the Domination mode on special maps where ten players fight each other. The Gauntlgrym dungeon represents a PvP endgame content where 40 players fight. And in Icewind Dale, there is a special open PvP zone. Particularly fun is the Stronghold mode, where two guilds battle each other, expand their fortresses, and then initiate sieges.
While PvP in Neverwinter can certainly be fun and requires special equipment, the game clearly shows that the focus is on PvE.
Neverwinter was not originally planned as an MMORPG, and you can feel it. Originally, Cryptic Studios wanted to create an online RPG for smaller groups of players. However, publisher Perfect World decided they wanted an MMORPG instead. Hence, the developers had to adjust the game accordingly.
That Neverwinter was not originally designed as an MMO is noticeable in many areas. The quests are designed for cooperative gameplay, and the whole story feels more like a single-player game that can be played cooperatively. This makes the player experience in Neverwinter quite unique.
How About the Long-Term Motivation of Neverwinter?
Neverwinter as an MMORPG aims to keep players engaged for a long time. There are endgame contents, the Foundry, and constant expansions. Nevertheless, there is a catch regarding long-term motivation. Yes, there’s a lot of content, but it is not particularly varied.
How Many Hours of Fun? Due to the previously released 15 expansions, the story of Neverwinter contains hundreds of hours of fun. This can be significantly expanded if you play quests created by players using the Foundry.
How Varied is the Game? Variety is somewhat the sticking point of Neverwinter. There is indeed a lot to do and many quests tell exciting stories. However, the actual missions usually follow a very similar pattern. You fight your way through an area, which often gives the impression of a linear level, facing the same recurring enemies. At the end, there’s usually a boss. Over time, this can become a bit monotonous.
What Do I Do After the Story? After the story, you can tackle endgame content in the form of Stronghold and Gauntlgrym battles or “raids”. However, you also have to enjoy PvP for that. Additionally, you’ll search for rare equipment by repeatedly hunting and defeating boss monsters, going on daily repeatable hunts. Moreover, it’s best to check out the Foundry quests of other players or even create your own missions with the editor.
Is There an Endgame? There is a number of intense “raid” dungeons that you can only complete in a group. There you face dangerous monsters like the dragon Tiamat or the Demogorgon. Defeating these creatures is only possible in a well-coordinated group and provides epic loot. In addition, PvP content is also waiting for you. With each expansion, the developers also add new challenges.
What About Microtransactions?
Neverwinter, as a free-to-play MMORPG, naturally offers microtransactions, through which further development is financed. The Zen Market allows you to purchase items such as epic companions or additional inventory slots using the in-game currency “Zen,” which can be bought with real money. However, this is not necessary unless you’re aiming for a competitive edge and wish to be among the best players. In that case, you might buy certain “advantages” that allow you to progress somewhat faster. It should not be seen as pay-to-win.
Neverwinter can also be completely “played through” without spending money. And you can have plenty of fun without spending a cent. Additionally, you’ll also collect Astral Diamonds in the game, which you can use to acquire almost any item in the auction house. The microtransactions in Neverwinter are essentially just for convenience. In around five years, the author of this article has not spent a single cent on Neverwinter and has still been able to experience countless adventures while having a lot of fun.
Thus, the microtransactions are a nice way to save time, but they are not strictly necessary. There are indeed references to microtransactions in the game, but they can be safely ignored.
Is the Game for Me?
Neverwinter is worth it for you if…
- you want to experience quests in an MMORPG.
- you do not focus on PvP but only occasionally want to compete with other players.
- it’s important to you to experience an epic story that is continuously developed.
- you are a fan of Dungeons & Dragons and especially of the Forgotten Realms scenario.
Similar Games: You Might Like Neverwinter if…
- you enjoy the focus on story in The Elder Scrolls Online and like to explore a lot.
- you love exciting boss fights like in TERA, where you have to come up with clever strategies with your team of friends to succeed.
- you enjoy exploring large dungeons like in RIFT where there is much to discover and find.
Difficulty Level: Beginners and Advanced. The difficulty level increases steadily. Beginners do not feel overwhelmed, but veterans also get challenging encounters later on.