Guild Wars: Nightfall

The Island of Shehkah in the Land of the Golden Sun, Elona ... An ancient and forgotten darkness is on the rise and the time of the five gods is at an end ... All that stands between what was and eternal darkness is the Order of the Sunspears.

Guild Wars is into its third expansion and like the previous one, Factions, Guild Wars: Nightfall brings new classes, new abilities, new dangers, new quests, new lore and new lands to explore.

The game introduces the classes of the Dervish and Paragon. The dervish is a whirlwind of scythe-oriented destruction, unleashing AoEs (area of effect spells), with some enchantments that will prove a boon to not only the dervish but his or her party. But when it comes to party-oriented skills, the paragon is the boss. Basically a ranged attacker, the paragon also has shouts that inspire party members to greater heights.

While GW: Nightfall is a head-long rush into danger and adventure, it’s time to slow down just a moment to chat about what Guild Wars is for those that may not know. GW is a massively multiplayer online game from NCsoft and ArenaNet that allows players to meet in staging areas, form parties and enter instanced mission zones. There is also PvP (player versus player) arenas in which players can fight others and gain experience.

As players progress through the game, they can unlock skills (which are trained through talking to the right NPC – non-playing character), and can only carry eight skills (in the hotbar) into a mission or PvP arena, creating a tactical element in which players configure skillsets to accent team needs. Players will be able to dual-class – meaning that each character created can have primary and secondary skill sets. A dervish might also be a ranger or a warrior or elementalist. There are eight total professions available and Nightfall adds the ability for players to save dual-class templates. Thus if you create a character you like for the role-playing (campaign) part of the game, and really like it, you can use the template to create a similar character for the PvP-only side of the game (arena combat).

Among the other new features, Nightfall introduces the heroes – NPCs that can be added to your party, and will actually level up as you do. With a hero in your party, you can open the character management screen and even allocate skill points to the various attributes. The AI will handle the hero in combat, but players will have the ability to determine what skills can be used and how the heroes they add are specialized. Players add the heroes through the party screen. It is very easy to do.

The look of the latest expansion takes on a decidedly Egyptian flare. The game still has an odd running posture for the women, and invisible walls that prohibit players from straying too far from the path. Still the game sparkles visually and combined with the musical score (and James Earl Jones opening narrative), Nightfall is a stellar treat for players looking for a game in which they can either play with others, or move along a path with NPCs as companions.

The control mechanics are unaltered.

Guild Wars: Nightfall is a tasty expansion that adds more goodness to the Guild Wars legacy. With elite quests and a robust system of story-driven quests, this is a game that is certain to occupy a lot of hours. PvP is fun and fast paced and the Nightfall adds more of what makes this free-subscription game so entertaining.

Gameplay: 8.9
Not much has changed in the way the game works, or the user interface. Saving templates is very cool, but do expect some load times.

Graphics: 8.8
While beautiful in terms of character looks and environments, the game does have the occasional odd animation. Some of the text screens fly by as well,

Sound: 8.7
The musical score is still very good, and the battle sounds are expected. The narrative was a pleasant surprise and the voice work is generally very well done.

Difficulty: Medium
The game is still very challenging and PvP is always fun, and quickly paced.

Concept: 8.5
While the expansion does add a new look, new professions and so one, nothing truly substantial has changed from the way the game is presented or the way it plays.

Multiplayer: 8.8
The fan base is still strong and you can find players to team up with. As players age, though, the perception of inexperience GW gamers seems to be creating a bit of a separation when it comes to looking for a team.

Overall: 8.6
Of course, the big draw is that there is no monthly subscription fee, but more than that, Guild Wars continues to expand the story of this land and with Nightfall, the game takes on a decidedly different flavor, but still manages to convey that feeling of encroachment of evil. The game looks good, and still plays well. The game does not substantially send the franchise forward with innovations, but rather adds to what is already there. It is a great title for fans of the Guild Wars games, though, in that it adds to the lore and characters.