fOUND THIS FOLLOW UP TO BE NOT AS GOOD AS THE NWN ORIGINAL +EXPANSION PACK SHADOWS OF UNDENTIDES. GAME PLAY IS SLOWER,PLOT MORE FORCED, THE NEW MAP GETS [N YHE WAY AND HAS NO DETAILS OF USE,HAVE MORE THAN ONE WINDOW OPEN AND ITS CRAMPED, UNABLE TO SIZE ANY OF THE WINDOWS. READING THE OTHER REVIEW I MUST BE MISSING SOMETHING IT DID NOT SOUND LIKE THE SAME GAME, WELL I AM GOING BACK TO OBLIVION, AN ALLMOST PERFECT RPG.

I have to say that I'm amazed. Unlike with the original game, the two campaigns in the expansions to NWN2 really feel like they're something new and original as opposed to something anyone could have created using the toolset. The new overhead map feature is a remarkable thing; exploration is encouraged as the marker points on the map don't appear until you've actually found a place. Also, skills such as 'Spot', 'Listen' etc actually have a purpose now as they improve your ability to move on the overhead map and find hidden secrets and places. A minus point here is that all the secret places to find usually consist of about one or two rooms instead of the vast places of Baldur's Gate, but they're still nice to pop into on your way back to a quest giver.

The trade system is quite innovative too, although it can be a drag to be asked for trade bars instead of gold, and it does feel slightly like a severely melted down version of Patrician. It's also not quite as ignorable as the promo material might lead you to believe, but it can actually get quite engrossing when you realise one of your trade carts has been waylaid and you dash off to help it.

Overall, the campaign is not quite as engrossing as Mask of the Betrayer but still well worth a play. The ability to create the majority of your own party is a welcome addition, hailing back to the days of Baldur's Gate and Icewind Dale, and let's you ignore the fact that the majority of the NPC companions are irritating and spineless. There's also a harsher death system; no more 'waking up' at the end of battles so there's finally a use for a Cleric to have Raise Dead learned. I found that I was using my Clerics/Druids etc a lot more for healing than I have in previous games, which is probably a good thing.

I haven't been able to play this campaign online yet with my friends, but it feels like it would work quite well. If you are a NWN fan, you must buy this.