Graphics:

The graphics have again been overhauled for Nightfall. The Paragon's armor is gilded with ivory colors and mother of pearl inlays. Wings pop out of them. The Dervish dance can be highlighted with a disco mirror ball. Everything in Guild Wars is over-the-top. From the sleek little game manual to the three fold quick reference guide. In the game the gorgeous visuals continue to be awe inspiring.

The graphics are full of color and life and immediately immerse you in a believable world. The graphics are sharp and photo realistic. It is not cartoonish like World of Warcraft, Everquest, and City of Heroes. This is perhaps the best artwork in fantasy video games today.

There are trees, flowers and grassy plains that seem endless. Each bit of vegetation, is placed as though it was meant to be there. The fauna changes with the area that it is in. If it is a sandy desert then you'll find spiny plants and if there is a beach, there are appropriate trees. The water looks amazing and you can see fish, sharks and other things swimming in it. This is a game that you can just wander about and enjoy the other worldly scenery as an alternative to the gray winter skies of new england, or where ever you are, out the window.

Up in the skies there are moving clouds and as time elapses the landscapes are lit with pretty twilight color effects. There is a subtext of tolerance in this game that has distilled the best of the old world into a new world as a reminder that political divisiveness in our reality will also one day pass into history leaving the goodness of art, and culture behind. I have to give the designers a tip of the hat here for boldly using Middle Eastern inspired costumes, landscapes and music. The drum beats of the music remind us of the origins of the danse baladie, or "belly dance". At one time the fertile crescent was the cradle of human civilization where the bazars were the forerunners of today's malls and marketplaces. It reminds us where "I Dream of Jeanie" and "Aladdin" came from. More importantly the birthplace of Arabic numbers, mathematics, and astronomy came from this war torn area of the real world.

The costumes in Nightfall are outrageously gorgeous. There are the angelic looking Paragons, the stalwart white armored Warriors and spearmen. The costumes for the female character are sparkling and diaphanous. How they got the skirt of the Elementalist to look transparent as though it were made of pure lightening is beyond me, but it looks amazing. These are some of the best costume designs that I've seen anyplace, except perhaps in Lineage 2 which is a game of another stripe entirely.

Sound/Music:

This time the haunting tones have an aura of anticipation. Tribal drums tap out a pensive beat that a provocative dance can be performed to. The synthesizer evokes a deep mood of suspense. The sound effects once again are a variety of birds, and the sound of the ebb and flow of waves. The music and sound are perhaps the second half of the immersion equation. With the excellent unparalleled graphics and the fantastic musical score. It isn't hard to drift off into an other worldly mood. The Guild Wars music by Jeremy Soule can also be downloaded or purchased separately on CD or from http://www.directsong.com/

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