Development
Development of Storm of Zehir began during the end of development of Neverwinter Nights 2 ' s first expansion, Mask of the Betrayer,[17] and was initially referred to as "NX2" by its designers.[18] The game was formally announced by Atari in June 2008. It would be developed by Obsidian Entertainment, creators of Neverwinter Nights 2 and Mask of the Betrayer, and was given a release date of the fourth quarter of 2008.[19] Despite being released after the fourth edition of Dungeons & Dragons, Storm of Zehir would continue to use the 3.5 edition rules.[20] The design team for Storm of Zehir was smaller than that of Mask of the Betrayer and was given a shorter development period.[21]
Like Neverwinter Nights 2,[22] Obsidian was inspired by older role-playing video games for Storm of Zehir, such as Fallout and the Baldur's Gate series.[23] Assistant producer Rob McGinnis said "[The game] plays more like a classic CRPG". The game was intended to be "more authentic" to pencil and paper Dungeons & Dragons by offering players a light-hearted approach to adventuring and a focus on exploration.[24] The designers included a party system they felt was more teamwork-oriented, such as the ability to custom-make the entire party and allowing party members to collaborate on social interactions.[24] The game's programmers were instructed to include the ability to change party members whenever the player wished.[25]
Storm of Zehir ' s storyline occurs concurrently with Mask of the Betrayer, which was set in the Rashemen region of Faerûn. The story was shaped by lead designer Tony Evans and written by Obsidian designer Annie Carlson.[26] The team leads decided to create an adventure that they considered more in line with the roots of Dungeons & Dragons by departing from the more serious, epic stories presented in Neverwinter Nights 2 and Mask of the Betrayer.[27] Evans said "This direction for the title can be seen throughout - finding random (and not random) goodies while searching the overland map, the addition of the Swashbuckler class, the variety of personalities in the cohorts ..."[28] The game's music was composed with this in mind; Evans wanted themes that would portray the feel of a "light-hearted adventure". Audio director Alexander Brandon collaborated with composers of games like the Heroes of Might and Magic series and Primal, as well as "rookie composers" from Rogue Dao Studios. Brandon had the option of using a live orchestra, but decided against it to include more music in the game.[29]
Obsidian implemented an overland map feature to allow players the opportunity to explore the areas of the game in great detail. Designer Nathaniel Chapman said "Furthermore, it provided an opportunity to increase the effectiveness of various skills that, frankly, were underutilized in previous Neverwinter Nights titles".[4] Obsidian created the map with a design philosophy centered on "interstitial space". Chapman explains:
"It's essentially the term for the space that exists between the things you are mainly concerned with in your study. So, if you're interested in looking at cells in the body, the goo that surrounds the cells is referred to as interstitial space. If you're designing a building, the space between each floor is interstitial space. That, in a way, is the space that Overland Maps in games like Fallout, Baldur's Gate, Final Fantasy, Darklands, and, of course, Storm of Zehir are conveying - those monster-filled roads, boundless plains and spooky forests you travel through on your way to meet interesting people (and possibly kill and loot them)."
The map's first prototype was inspired by the map seen in the Indiana Jones films. It behaved similarly to normal gameplay, and Obsidian decided to revamp it to create a "more dynamic and reactive interstitial space". Characters would be able to avoid monsters by having a high enough Survival skill and could find hidden items and locations with high Search skills. Groups of adventuring NPCs could be observed and interacted with by players, including helping them fight aggressive monsters. Trade caravans created within the game's economic subplot are visible and the player can actively protect their own investments. The overland map feature was created with the modding community in mind, and players using the Neverwinter Nights 2 toolset can modify the map's options on an individual basis.[30]
Storm of Zehir was ready for mass production on November 1, 2008, and was released on November 18, 2008, in North America, November 21 in Europe, and December 11 in Australia.[31][32] It was also made available for download on digital distribution service Direct2Drive.[33]
