The first thing that most old school D&D players had to do was rush out and buy a copy of whatever rulebook they intended on playing. DDO follows this example pretty accurately, but players do get the first big pack of content for free. Even though the actual world of DDO is quite small, there is still a solid amount of content and dungeons that players can enjoy for free. It is even possible to earn premium currency, Favor Points, by completing various tasks and clearing dungeons, which can then be turned into Turbine Points. While this process can take upwards of a few years, it is possible to buy all of the additional races and adventure packs by converting this favor.

When comparing the combat mechanics of DDO and Neverwinter it really comes down to personal preference. Both games have excellent, active combat systems that feel more like a third-person action game than the stereotypical, sluggish tab-targeting variety MMORPG. DDO was definitely ahead of its time when released, but Neverwinter has stepped up the ante quite considerably. The fights in Neverwinter are fast-paced, use flashy skills, and require well-timed positioning and active dodging. Unfortunately, the number of available skills are harshly limited and it costs Zen to respect into different talents.

The combat though was really fun with a controller to my surprise. Playing with a controller was one of my biggest worries starting off the game, with a lack of lock on I was not sure how well aiming at the enemy was going to feel. It took a little bit of adjusting the joystick sensitivity but once I found a comfortable setting I was able to kickback, relax, and start melting down my enemies. That was when it hit me; leveling up in a MMO wouldn’t feel like a grind if I was relaxing on my couch! So I quickly hooked up my PS4 in my living room to test this theory of mine, and my God it worked. Countless hours flew by and I hadn’t even realized it; this is when I realized that leveling up in an MMO makes for a great couch gaming experience.

Neverwinter has the familiar launch screen that you can see on most games these days and when its open it will patch your game and update it to the current build. Once that beautiful play button lights up you launch in and the first thing you have to do is pick a Shard. For the purposes of BETA, there are 2 shards right now, I selected the Dragon Shard and my adventures began there. The first thing your face with is what class you want to go, for the purpose of the BETA there was options for Human, Elf, Half-Elf, Dwarf, Halfling and Tiefling, with a few more options coming soon. They have also announced that after release they will be continually releasing new races. The screen was nice and polished and all races gave you a nice little wrap up and offered you the racial traits of the particular class. I chose an Elf and the proceeded to selecting my class. To find out Neverwinter Astral Diamonds, check out rvgm.com which is a professional game website.