I am struggling with exactly the right tone to strike for this review. On one hand Sword Coast Legends is an incredibly fun game to play. That is perhaps the most important factor. On the other hand, and this bothers me greatly, Sword Coast Legends is not as true to the Dungeons & Dragons rules as it claims to be. This is problem because not only is the setting (the Sword Coast region of Faerûn) part of the official Forgotten Realms campaign setting for the 5th edition of Dungeons & Dragons, the story ties into the other products on offer, such as the Neverwinter MMO and the pen & paper game.
I decided to play as a Dwarf Paladin. Because in all my years of playing Dungeons & Dragons (or D&D) I have never played as that race or class. Sword Coast Legends uses a skill tree system for character advancement, which is fine, but there are some abilities for the class I chose to play as that do not get automatically unlocked.
Paladins, according the the Player’s Handbook, automatically get Divine Smite at 2nd level. Instead this needed to have skill points expended and then selected. Yes, skill points. When the player’s character levels up, a number of points are awarded to be used to “purchase” new skills. Some require a certain level to be attained, others do not. In D&D 5th edition, there are no skill points, players instead choose which direction or path to follow and attain different skills as they progress. Avenging Angel is an ability only a 2oth level Paladin who follows the Oath Of Vengeance path can attain. In Sword Coast Legends it is there for the unlocking. And well before level 20.
To me, this is the biggest problem with Sword Coast Legends. I wanted a 5th edition D&D game, and got one that uses the setting, but the characters and classes are more “inspired” by the ruleset, rather than actually adhering to it.
Combat is another area where Sword Coast Legends differs from D&D. There are no rounds and turns. I’m not saying Sword Coast Legends needed to be strictly turn-based with pauses for every action during combat – it just feels like the combat just doesn’t adhere to the rules of Dungeons & Dragons. This isn’t a bad thing, really, the in-game combat is fine, but it just isn’t the D&D experience some will expect.
Enough complaining. There is a lot to like about Sword Coast Legends, and that is what has kept me playing the game. While I am not done playing the game’s main story I have gotten to a point where I feel confident in the game overall to render some sort of judgement. The bottom line recommendation is to purchase the game.
Starting off, players will select a race and class with a fair bit of customization. Since the players usually only the the backside of their in-game avatar, it seems weird to worry about much of the facial feature. Still, there’s some options here players will want to spend some time with exploring before jumping into the game.
As for the plot, well, it starts out easy enough but as with most role-playing games things take a turn for the worse and with side-quests one winds up getting into all sorts of trouble. Not only that, the very nature of the player’s professional existence is called into question.
Options and choices are key for Dungeons & Dragons, and Sword Coast Legends does a decent job with regards to the various bits of dialogue with NPCs as well as the side quests. What it doesn’t do so well is offering (or making obvious when they are there) the options and choices during non-dialogue moments – essentially every time the player is in a dungeon. Players can activate a passive search which allows for traps and hidden items to appear, but it does slow movement. That’s about the biggest choice players can get. Oh, sure, during combat players can pause the game and give orders to the party members which is useful, especially with the spellcasters, but that’s not the sort of options I was looking for. When playing Dungeons & Dragons it is open-ended, players can attempt just about anything their imagination comes up with. While I wasn’t expecting Sword Coast Legends to be completely open-ended, I was hoping to get some more options other than kill everything and everybody.
One of the big draws for Sword Coast Legends is the Dungeon Master mode. I have to say that I have not been able to fully create a module and have it “out there” and tested by the masses, but what I have played around with I liked. There are already a number of great modules players have come up with that are well worth the time it takes to play. When you buy Sword Coast Legends you are not just purchasing the game as developed and sold, but any number of other adventures as well and the list just keeps growing.
Multiplayer is another aspect of the game that will certainly please a lot of people. That very same Dungeon Master mode allows one player to act as the Dungeon Master and several other players to enter a dungeon – and play in real time. Players can also play together without a DM. Online cooperative play is here as well.
Despite the problems I still think Sword Coast Legends is a fun game. Is it perfect? No. Is it a 5th edition D&D game? No. Is it worth your money? Yes.