Dungeons and Dragons Online (DDO) was showing off their upcoming module 8 update at Gen Con and Executive Producer Kate Paiz showed me some of the awesomeness. Not having playing DDO before (having been scared off by some of the more dedicated crowd), I have to admit that what I saw made me excited to take a look, as soon as the module hits the live servers!

The first, most visible change, Mod 8 brings is the DirectX 10 compatibility. It was beautiful! Snow was falling, shadows were shadowy, and as leaves on the trees overhead (means covered in small spots) danced in the wind, they moved across the skin of the character and, I could swear, gave her goose bumps! The water reflections were nothing short of superb, and it was one of the most breathtaking scenes an MMO has yet to present to me.

Kate said the DX10 offers "truer light absorption" in the environment, but not being a real techy to decipher that for you, I can explain it much more simply. The shadows, light, and environment you'll encounter fit so perfectly into the world that it's a visually stunning presentation second to none.

Mod 8 also attempts to bring the game down to a more average gamer, with the addition of a new character generation system. For those of us not familiar with the Dungeons and Dragons pen and paper system (I'm going to get emailed death threats over admitting that, I just know it.), pre-set paths for character builds allow for easy progression without fearing to skill up in a path that won't help your arch-type. For those who know exactly what they want to progress in, or how to start their character from the beginning, complete customization is not lost.

Kate said the change was aimed at accommodating those who "are more familiar with the 1st and 2nd editions, or don't know the 3.5 ruleset at all". As one who's unfamiliar with what that even means, the changes obviously apply to me!

Each time a new level is reached the system recommends the best path for specialization; again, giving players a sometimes needed gentle push in the right direction. However, with the build of Mod 8 that will be pushed to live, once a character decides not to take the recommended advice, there will be no other suggestions. If players decide to take the recommended options, there's only a 33% chance of partying with a like pathed character. A system is planned that will take the players wishes into account and still make the best build possible, but at this time with so many builds possible, it simply isn't going to happen by the time the module is done.

Not only has creation been changed to help new players get a better look at the game, but the new player experience has also been updated with a new tutorial area that eases folks into the play style and world of DDO. This area introduces you to groups, and interacting with the world's puzzle, as well as giving you an idea of paths (specs in other games) and how your character will play. NPC voice overs are planned for this area with the launch of Mod 8, but they weren't available in the beta build I was shown.

The team is aiming to deliver a story based experience that draws you into the lore and world you're about to experience in full force, and the little I saw excited me a great deakl. It's obvious they've gone to great lengths to ensure that while they're looking to make new players comfortable, it's not at the expense of the game and lore they've already created.

As a new player you'll start on an island in the Thunder Sea, where your ship has been destroyed by a dragon! Not bad for an intro into a fantasy world, right? The new area takes advantage of DirectX10 with the first winter area ever in game. Snow is falling, the mountain peaks are covered in ice, and it looks fantastic! When you get to the end of the new player experience you'll get to see the dragon up close and personal! Probably more so than you'll ever want to be to a dragon! While it may look amazing, it's as deadly as one could want a dragon to be. Good luck adventurers!

Since DDO is and always will be a group based game the intro area takes great care to ensure you know what you're getting into. You find a group of NPC's who walk you through your first encounter and help you decipher the puzzles you find, they also assist in defeating your enemies in order to get armor and weapons. As you progress, the game gives you hints and tips along the way. As Kate said "Gear is good", and this experience helps teach the gear system (quite different from other MMOs) to those unfamiliar with it, and does an very good job of keeping it understandable without being overwhelming.

The dungeon encounter you'll be taken through has mobs that were introduced in Module 7, the Sahuagin! These finned serpents with legs will delight folks both familiar and unfamiliar with the DDO history, and provide plenty of target practice!

One thing to note about the starting party is that they won't show up on your interface as a group. There is no healing or assisting of these folks. The team wanted a streamlined introduction without overwhelming the poor little new guys with so much to do they take off and never come back. While it's a good plan, I'm interested to see how it works out. Your first group doesn't show up as a real group on your UI, but groups do thereafter and this may be a bit more confusing than not.

The big thing I noticed in this area is that the game gives you hints about things to look at in the world, but you're free to ignore them and, as you progress further, the hints don't stay up on screen requiring you to backtrack in order to proceed. A well done example of how a tutorial should walk you through a new world, without extreme hand holding, If you want to ignore something the game thinks you should look at, the game shuts up! It's incredible!

Those familiar with classic D&D will find the new area has monsters and lore you're already know, while those of us who are not familiar will find an MMO experience that's drawing you into the world without feeling lost or left out. The area does a great job here, and really is to be highly commended!

Breakable space is introduced with the update. Barrels and other flotsam washed up upon the beach can be kicked or knocked over, revealing...well, nothing yet, but what was being demo'd was a beta build! With this in game there are lots of neat things the team can build into the world, and Kate seemed pretty excited over it.

The final greatness that's coming in with the module is Hirelings. This system allows each player to purchase NPC assistance for dungeon runs, with a total of 3 hirelings in any given group. So a group of 2 now becomes 4, and so on, giving duos and small groups a much needed chance to doing more, faster and on their own schedule.

Hirelings can be called once dungeons have been entered, so that their contracted time isn't taken up with running to your destination. If you're in the middle of an encounter when their contracted time expires hirelings will not abandon you. These helpful spirits come in the four main paths of the game. So you can hire a cleric, sorcerer, rogue, or fighter, and they'll respond as any other group mate might. They'll heal, die, rez, be rezzed, attack, and be attacked! Oh the humanity!

For those already playing DDO the update will bring four new landscape areas and new dungeons for exploration. Landscape (non-dungeon) playable space is now available in all experience band ranges, making for a much larger world and many different adventuring options.

You'll see the story behind Reaver's Bane continue, and have a chance to interact with that story in greater depth. No further details about that one are being released right now, though Kate promised we'd see something soon!

Module 8 is being planned for a fall 2008 launch (October or November-ish was the actual time frame given), and the team is working hard not only on this release, but those of the future! For Module 9, the level cap is being increased and further down the road we'll see 2 new races and a new class being brought into the world. Plans for Mac compatibility remain on the wish list, of course. But how far down the road it will happen is unknown at this time.

Best of luck to Kate and her crew, and we'll be looking at DDO much more closely once Mod 8 launches!

Becky "Tovin" Simpson
Allakhazam.com News Editor & Staff Writer
ZAM Network