Full Review

16 December 2003 - Neverwinter Nights: Shadows of Undrentide is a new add-on pack to the hugely popular Neverwinter Nights that will see you fighting new creatures, learning new skills, and exploring new landscapes. To benefit from all this, you will need to own a copy of the original game.

Based on an entirely new area of the game, those gamers who are expecting to be able to bring their characters from the original game across into this version will be sorely disappointed. This time you play a Dwarvish mage's apprentice, searching for the culprits behind an elaborate artefact heist.

To make up for the fact that you've basically got to start again, Bioware, the games developers, have given us five more Prestige Classes; Assassin, Arcane Archer, Blackguard, Harper Scout, and Shadowdancer. Of course in true gaming style you have to learn these high-level classes and most become available around about level five as long as you've made the right decisions early on.

Controls are still the same as before and unlike Microsoft's Dungeon Siege you still only have control over one character. However Bioware have including the ability to allow access to your companion's inventory pack and this is ideal for transferring items in and out of their packs and carrying all your gold from your latest raid.

VERDICT
Overall Shadows of Undrentide is a strange beast. With so many mods available for free on the internet there is plenty to keep you busy within the Neverwinter Nights community before you ever have to venture into this official add-on.

In addition to that the fact that you can't simply bring your previous character makes this more of a Neverwinter Nights 1.5 rather than an add-on pack where you need the original. That said, this add-on pack is very good, with plenty of new features, levels, monsters and classes to beat, complete and earn. Whatever we say won't stop it selling a million copies to owners of the original (and the Hordes of Underdark second add-on, coming soon to a boxset near you) so grab the D & D rulebook and enjoy.