Its no secret, I love Neverwinter Nights. The original on AOL started me down the road to where I am today. Fans of Baldurs Gate, Icewind Dale or the new Neverwinter Nights should deffinately check out this interview with Obsidians Ferret Baudoin (dig that name!).
Shack: Though the game will still focus on the city of Neverwinter, its obviously inadvisable to simply “port” the city from the original game to the sequel. What changes can we expect to see to the recreated city of Neverwinter?
Baudoin: One of the big map-making changes in Neverwinter Nights 2 is were no longer tile-based, so that opened up whole new vistas for Neverwinter city herself. Hills, winding roads, parks, etc. are now all doable. So the city may not look much like the first game. You visit some of the same districts (like Blacklake and the Docks). [As far as storyline is concerned,] The reason its so different is the construction after the war in the original game.
Read the full 2 page interview, plus awesome looking screenshots at Shacknews.com.