Developer Beamdog’s 2018 remaster of Neverwinter Nights: Enhanced Edition has just gotten even more “enhanced”, with a massive update that adds high definition models and textures to the classic RPG.
In a Steam post announcing the pointedly titled HD Models & Textures Pack (as spotted by PC Gamer), Beamdog says it is “happy to announce that after several years of hard work, Neverwinter Nights: Enhanced Edition models of player characters and their equipment (armour, weapons and shields) have finally been remade! Thank you kindly for your patience and support over these years!”
The pack adds 4.1GB of new assets to the game. However, Beamdog also notes that “using remade models on lower-end machines can lead to potential problems with the game performance”. Because of this, rather than making the texture pack a conventional update to the game, it’s available as an optional direct download.
The developer says that not only do the “new models support normal and spec information” but that every one of the new assets introduced into the game “can be further modded by the community, which is in line with the base game setup”.
The original Neverwinter Nights was released in 2002, developed by BioWare. Part of the Dungeons & Dragons universe, its popularity saw numerous expansion packs and “premium modules” – smaller, standalone adventure – adding to the base game. A full sequel, Neverwinter Nights 2, was developed by Obsidian Entertainment in 2006, which enjoyed its own host of add-ons.
Beamdog’s Enhanced Edition saw the ageing title glossed up, supporting display resolutions up to 4K and introducing advanced visual features such as pixel shaders and post-processing effects. The developer also worked with the game’s player community to implement fan-requested improvements and more significant support for modders. The new HD Models & Texture Pack is likely the icing on the cake for many players, bringing the visuals fully into the modern era and away from the notably polygonal look characters still sported.
