
Monthly Archives: November 2009
Runes of Magic: The dragon is on the loose

Guild Wars: Exclusive OnRPG Guild Wars PvP Guide
By Joshua Temblett (Dontkillmydreams), OnRPG Journalist
Guild Wars (GW) offers perhaps one of the best Player Versus Player experiences around. Whether you’re a casual gamer who can only play for twenty minutes, or a hard core MMORPG nut who loves to game for hours on end, ArenaNet’s buy-to-play MMORPG will suit you. With a PVP system that enables you to jump in and create a max level straight from the get go, what’s there not to like?
When you boot up GW and create a new character, you’ll have the chance to either start from the beginning of the game and develop your little avatar through exciting Player Versus Environment segments which will take you all the way through the beautifully developed world, or create a level twenty character (the cap level) and just participate in the slaughter of other human players. I bet you’re thinking, “It’s only PVP…who cares?” Well my friend, this MMO just so happens to offer some of the best player versus player experiences on the market.
Once you’ve made your character, you can quickly create armour and weapons that suit your gameplay style by just going onto the Inventory section and clicking the conveniently placed “PvP Equipment” button. From there you can choose and customise everything, even the colours of your clothes. The interesting thing about Guild Wars is that, in the designers’ own words, the game is based around the obtaining news skills, like in “Magic: the Gathering”, rather than level grinding character progression. These skills don’t make you more powerful, but instead provide you with a different strategy to tackle an enemy.
This is what makes Guild Wars interesting, the various plans you can create and conduct with your friends and also how you intend to react to different situations. If you have a tank character who has eight out of the eight slots available dedicated to taking lots of damage and healing yourself on the frontlines, what happens when you come across a de-buffer who uses health degen spells that, with great speed, lower your health at an alarming rate that is almost impossible to heal, and then casts an interrupt hex on you that won’t enable you to recover your health? It doesn’t matter how much health you’ve got, if someone is sneaky they can easily catch you out.

In Player Versus Player combat, things can change within in a second, so you have to be prepared for everything. Or maybe you don’t? Gimmick character builds focus on one strategy and, instead of being prepared for anything that comes their way like a Balanced build, are hopeful that the enemy will meet the conditions required for the build to work. This gameplay style is generally very high risk and, whilst it can reap in rewards if all goes as planned, can end up in epic failure, and if it does then you spend the rest of the round, however long or short it is, getting owned by the enemy which as we all know isn’t very fun.
I know that you’re thinking, “That every MMO’s PVP content focuses on builds and how you use skills”, and yes that’s true. What’s special about Guild Wars’ PVP is that you can quickly and simply edit your skills, attributes and armour/weapons. You don’t have to go on some crazy quest half way across the world to get that one skill you need, no – all you have to do is visit a character called “Priest of Balthazar” who will exchange your Balthazar faction points (earned from doing PVP) for Heroes (more about them later), upgrade components for your weapons, and of course skills. Any of the aforementioned you buy will be available to all of your PVP characters, however not your PVE characters who have to travel through the world to get different skills.
Your hub, where you can do a variety of activities such as change your characters secondary profession, is the “Great Temple of Balthazar”. From here you can go into a training ground to test builds, or go to a Luxon Diplomat or a Kurzick Recruiter. The Luxons and the Kurzicks are the two in-game Factions that inhabit the world of Cantha, which you can only access if you own the “Guild Wars Factions” campaign. These two NPCs can take you special PVP areas where you participate in competitive missions for a faction of your choice and which evolve you fighting the other faction (who will all be human controlled players).
Whether you win or lose, you’ll gain Luxon/Kurzick faction (depending on what faction you fought for), which you can trade in for rare items. The faction battles don’t stop there though, as from your Guild hall (provided you have one) you can access “Alliance battles” whereby Luxon and Kurzicks fight against each other. These battles have a deep impact to Cantha, as whichever faction wins pushes into the enemies borders which then gains that faction “a momentum bonus”, enabling them to push deeper into enemy lines. This also means that the faction will gain control of towns or outposts rewarding them with special bonuses.
If you haven’t guessed by now the Factions campaign is the place to be for PVP. But there’s more. You can participate in smaller battles in the Random Arena, where you’re randomly grouped with other players, or in the Team Arena, where you can create a team and fight with them. These are both 4v4 battles. There’s also the option to do Hero Battles, which involve you and your NPC Heroes (computer controlled players which you can customise) battling it out against others.

Then there’s the Guild versus Guild. If you’re part of a Guild you can go head to head against another guild in 8v8 battles. These can be ranked or just a normal unrated scrimmage. These modes are generally the cream of the crop with regards to skill, as each guild fights to be the best. These battles are ruthless, fun, but can be very hard so be prepared for a challenge.
I know that at the moment you’re probably tired and maybe even a bit overwhelmed (or maybe not?), but there’s one more mode. Heroes’ Ascent (HA) or as it’s also known, Tombs. HA is a global tournament, where players compete in several arenas before arriving at the “Hall of Heroes”, where the final battle takes place. If you win you gain very valuable loot and, perhaps the greatest reward of them all, server wide recognition of your success as a broadcast is made declaring “(<Name> or <Guild Name> [<Guild Tag>]) has won a battle in the Hall of Heroes.” which shows the server population just who’s boss.
So does Guild Wars have the best PVP in any MMO? In this writer’s opinion yes, as it’s accessible, simplistic and fun. If you doubt my opinion then why don’t you try the game and find out for yourself?
BBO: Beyond the Horizon Trailer
Bounty Bay Online soon launches it’s expansion ‘Beyond the Horizon’ including new harbors and five new character classes. Check out the trailer now!
Dragon Oath: Open Beta users response
The Open Beta for Dragon Oath begins running today and thousands of the early entrants into the Closed Beta are marveling at their initial experiences with the game. With all of the information in the game now available to the general public, we are interested in the users’ responses to its Closed Beta and the company’s future plans to stand out in the crowded MMO market. Martin Tan, general manager of the game’s publisher, takes us through the game’s world and offers his thoughts on the state and future of MMORPGS, especially the free-to-play genre.
1. How were the users’ responses to the Closed Beta?
Gamers have a global community. They share a lot on those online game forums. Some American gamers have heard of the Chinese version of Dragon Oath before, and are excited that the game will be launched in the U.S. so that they can finally try out the game themselves. We noted that our users are especially interested in the huge variety of pets and mounts in the game. Not only can they breed their own pets, but they are also thrilled by the 24/7 continuous live in-game events. These are features they typically will not find in other games. We are delighted with some of the positive feedback received and the momentum we are seeing in the game. Last week we saw the creation of our first guild city, a task in our game that is very hard to achieve given the limited time we have been in closed beta. I even attended a wedding within the game that had a high turnout rate. So overall I would say the players are quite excited about our game Dragon Oath.
2. What in Closed Beta indicates that Dragon Oath’s performance in U.S. will have some comparable level of success to that in China, where it is one of the most popular online games with 850,000 peak concurrent users?
User feedback during Closed Beta indicated that Dragon Oath is of similar quality as some of the best MMORPGs in the U.S. After over two years of developments and upgrades in China, what was brought to the U.S. market is a more developed and mature version. Besides, we believe the game offers players a unique gaming experience.
3. Any major changes suggested by players during the Closed Beta?
As we move into Open Beta and receive even more suggestions from players, we will look at the possible ways in which we can utilize players’ feedback for future releases because we are always interested in creating games with features that players would like to see. With the game having been in operation in China for over 2 years, the current version of our game already incorporates the ideas of many players. For example, when we first launched the Chinese version of Dragon Oath in China, it didn’t have as many pets and mounts as we have in the game today. It was only later, after our users told us what other types of pets and mounts they would like to have in the game that we added these features in. Same for armor sets. We believe players in the US will benefit from all these add-on items that will make their playing experience more fun and fulfilling.
Also, we will be opening up many new features for the Open Beta, such as “Martial Arts Battle”, an event in which every class will choose contestants to represent the class to fight and at the end of the battle, all members of the winning class will receive 3x of the normal quest rewards for a period of time after the event. In celebrations of the Open Beta launch, we will be holding special events both in-game and off-line, and will be giving away many great gifts. For more updates, players are welcome to visit our website www.DragonOath.com.
4. What are the biggest challenges during the Closed Beta?
Translation was difficult for a game this big. Certain Chinese ideas are hard to express in English. So our localization team, which consists of bilingual American veteran gamers, worked really hard on this. For every episode in the game, even small episodes, our team would translate multiple times until our local testers are satisfied. The Closed Beta was very helpful in this aspect. Now we feel we are ready to launch the game.
5. What expectations do you have for Dragon Oath in North America, in terms of player acceptance?
Players that try out Dragon Oath will find something really unique and different in this game from what they are generally used to playing. For example, in our game, marriage is an actual in-game function, so when you head out on adventures with your spouse in the game, you will get the benefit of extra experience points. So if gamers are looking for a different gaming experience from what they have had in the past, Dragon Oath is a game they should try. Dragon Oath also contains familiar concepts found in other games, like questing, guilds, pets, and mounts, but also includes new ways of doing things, for example the experience points you earn through questing can be used to increase your level and stats, or buy new skills. On the other hand, most other online games give you free skills just for leveling up. This change in core concept will really make spending experience points exciting for gamers because it is no longer simply about just getting to the next level. We are looking forward to see the level of acceptance by users to these new ideas and will continue to seek ways to enhance Dragon Oath and future games based on the feedback we get from launching our first game in the US.
6. How has the ChangYou.com (US) Inc.’s background as the U.S. subsidiary of China’s leading online game developer and operator contributed to the launch of Dragon Oath in U.S.?
One of the most important factors differentiating the free-to-play game industry in the East and in the West is people. In China, there is already a large population of online gamers playing our game. As such, we are experienced with managing games that have large number of people, which will allow us to provide better customer support and live game event management to our US players.
7. What should players be looking forward to in Dragon Oath Open Beta?
We are opening up many new features for the open beta:
Martial Arts Battle. The Martial Battle opens every Thursday from 7:00pm to 8:00pm and every Sunday from 3:00pm to 4:00pm. Every class will choose contestants to represent the class in the battle. All members of the winning class will receive 3x the normal quest rewards for a period of time after the event.
Kung Fu World Soccer Game
On the first Sunday of every month from 7:00 pm to 11:00 pm, the Kung Fu World Soccer game is held in the Luo Yang soccer field, and in celebration of Open Beta, there will an additional game held on September 8th.
Trivia
There are 20 examiners in Da Li, each with 10 questions. Players can find the next examiner by following the directions given by the previous one. By joining Trivia, players have the chances to gain experience points as well as special items when they answer correctly. If the player makes it into the 2nd round, the player will also have the chance of winning other awards and items. The first 3 winners in the 2nd round will be granted titles and awarded in-game items.
Fight for the Treasure Map
Players who reach level 30 can accept the Treasure Map quest. By defeating gangsters, players will gain experience points, gold, and possibly a treasure map.
Great Teamwork
Players can join the lottery by talking to Da Li’s (266,127) Lily White for a chance to win the Platypus, Luxury Blue Capsule, Luxury Red Capsule and Little Donkey after collecting all four word papers items which are “Master, Disciple, Happy, and Strong”. In addition, both master and disciple can team up and get nice awards from Da Li’s (266,127) Lily White if the disciple levels up to Lv 30 and Lv 45, and if the friendship points between the two reach 500 from just this quest.
Pet Island Monster Patrol
There are flying cats, pigs, puppies, eagles, and tigers in the Pet Island! Oh my! Players should beware.
8. Do you allow players to keep their open beta characters after the launch of the game? Do you have a planned level cap for the pre-launch participants?
We will not delete any characters at the current stage, and we will have a level cap of 70.
9. Should we expect a major update to the game within a few months after launch?
You can look forward to monthly updates and expansion packs typically every 3 to 4 months. Also, we will have special in-game events for certain festivals and holidays throughout the year. A lot of fun and surprises to come!
10. There are perhaps some stereotypes about free-to-play games – mainly that if it costs nothing the quality can’t be as high as something like World of Warcraft. How does Dragon Oath challenge these assumptions?
Results will tell us in time. We have been doing this in China for over two years – offering a quality game free of charge. I understand many gamers think that “free-to-play” means low quality graphics, a lot of bugs, and endless tricks to have them spend a lot of money. But with Dragon Oath, gamers will notice that the whole game is highly developed and we believe our game provides intricate game-play that is comparable to some of the best pay-to-play games out there in the market. We believe Dragon Oath will provide gamers a different playing experience from what they find in World of Warcraft given the unique characteristics of our game as I have introduced earlier.
11. In terms of the business model of Dragon Oath – micro-transactions, are you different from other free-to-play games which are funded the same way?
Many free-to-play games require their users to buy virtual items like special weapons or armor that isn’t available through normal game-play, if they want to stay competitive or access all available content. Dragon Oath doesn’t do that. For example, we don’t sell armor sets in the Token Shop. Also, some of the items we sell in the Token Shop can be gained through normal game-play. We strive to offer various features for different types of players so that even players that do not have deep pockets can enjoy the game, such as various community-building features and team-based activities. Ultimately, our aim is on building long-term loyalty from players.
12. Anything else you’d like to tell our readers?
Come play Dragon Oath and experience “Nine Destinies and Infinite Possibilities”. We’re ready for you to prove yourself and become a Kung Fu master.
Dragon Oath started their Open Beta Nov. 5th, with the commercial launch coming soon. To register an account, head over to the game’s official site.

Steps Evolution Online
STEPS is a new 3D Dancing Game featuring the hottest dance party in town! Looking to break free from your monotonous life? Follow the STEPS, embark on a wild journey of beats and rhythms, let the music move your body, and jive your way to the hall of fame and glory!
Dance Party
Feast your eyes on the stunning 3D graphics, experience the vibrant dance scenes, and show your dazzling moves to the entire world! Join your friends and see who’s the grooviest dancer, or even rent a ballroom where you make your own rules and see it become the hottest and the coolest dance club in town!
Neverland Online registers 10k players in its first month
Nearly a month and 10,000 registered players later, Neverland Online is slated to begin Phase 2 Open Beta on November 13.
The Oak Pacific Interactive Game Center has worked hard this past month to improve the game’s functionality and add new features.
Here’s a look at what’s in store:
– Improved in-game translations
– Enhanced gameplay variability with an active Recharge Function
– Players can earn Gold Credit (advanced game money) by reaching certain levels.
Stay tuned for forthcoming information about Neverland Online freebies, including how you can get a free Novice Pack at OnRPG to help you level up.
About Neverland Online
Neverland Online, the hugely popular fantasy browser-based MMORPG developed by China’s Oak Pacific Interactive (OPI), recently became accessible to players in North America and Europe, when an English-language version entered open beta testing on October 15.

LOLfest Review: Life Is A Real MMO
By Kei Beneza (dividelife), Onrpg Journalist
Article originally featured in Thirteen1 Gaming Magazine: October Issue.
Why do we play MMOs to begin with? Massively Multiplayer Online games or MMOs are famous due to their Massive (hence the first M) player base. Sometimes it gets boring whenever you play a game in single player, and he same goes in real life. Life itself can be an MMO. It has a large playerbase, you can gain experience, I’m sure you know what I’m talking about. Although life is the same as any MMO, it’s quite hard to level up in real life, so here’s a bunch of pointers to help you fix your stats.
1) Never skip conversations
Life tends to have a lot of these, and in order to understand your quest further, you have to read the fine print. When dealing with the enemy, your best bet is to listen to those who came before you. Highbies would know the world a lot better than you so always make sure you get a few pointers before you go forth on your journey.
2) Party up
Sometimes, you might find yourself carrying out a task that you can’t finish on your current level. Grouping up with a bunch of other players can make your job a hell of a lot easier as you can now finish harder tasks on your current level. Yeah, the experience points will be divided as you kill monsters, but do know that it is you who will get the quest exp in the end. If ever you find yourself in a nasty position, always know that the party button is just a click away.
3) Choose your party members
Just cause people accept your party invitation doesn’t mean they’ll help you out. Some people will just leech experience points with minimal effort. Do know that you’ll always have the handy kick option at your disposal. If ever you’re not the party leader, send a whisper message to avoid any sudden mishaps. There are a lot of players in this game, so don’t around recruiting random people as though you’re going to run out of people to recruit.
4) Don’t be afraid to start over
Sometimes, we tend to think that we’re no longer capable of progressing. When you dead end your character, always know that it’s never too late to start over. Of course you’ll have to go through the newbie stage all over again, but if it’s necessary to further compliment your play style (or Lifestyle), then don’t think twice about starting over. Dead ending your character is always a drag. Unless you’re contented with being stuck on level 30, go on and start over. Who knows? You may even be more powerful than ever before.
5) Try out all the classes
You can’t always say that your first class will be your last. There are tons of classes to choose from (both in game and in real life) so make sure that you try them out to avoid going on a linear path. You may even be better as a Warlock than you were as a Warrior. Just because you didn’t do well as a warrior doesn’t mean all your efforts were in vain. Know that you now have an idea on how a warrior class is played and can now counter accordingly when facing one.
6) Always make sure to examine the item shop
Ever had a mob of mosquitoes attack you in your room? You wouldn’t be dealing with this problem if you purchased the bug zapper from the items dealer. Since you can only get a fixed amount of gold, it’d be wise to only purchase necessary items before you embark on your journey. Thanks to the bug zapper, the mosquitoes now refuse to respawn in my room LOL.
7) Always save up for the future and spend wisely
Some items may be more expensive than the rest. You must never be contented with using small potions only, because there will come a time when the amount of health it replenishes will no longer suffice. Always save up and expect yourself to attain more needs as time progresses. Remember, a poorly maintained character is the same as a dead-ended one.
8) GRIND like never before
Some people grind in school, and some grind at work. Know that each task you finish or each monster you kill gives you a decent amount of experience points. If you’re willing to progress faster, then grind like never before. Oh by the way, always make sure to rest accordingly after each grinding session. This game runs on a hardcore difficulty so you won’t be able to respawn if you lose too much HP.
9) Keep track of your achievements
Yes, your achievements serve as your credentials in real life. If ever you were to apply for a guild (or work) your achievements will be their basis on whenever you’re in or out. Always make sure to gather achievements and list them down for everyone to see. Remember, just because you started late doesn’t mean you can’t be as good as those who came before you. It’s a long process but you’ll get there.
10) Enjoy
Your ending will take you back to how you’ve started your journey. It’s the story of your life. You should be happy that you’re playing this free to play MMO (with a very hefty item mall I might add), so always enjoy and do everything you can to make this experience last. You make your own ending, whether as a highbie or lowbie. Know that it’s not about how well you did when finishing it, it’s how much you enjoyed that matters.
The Verdict
And there you go! Geeky, if I may say so myself. You’re basically taken into this Free to play MMORPG where you matter as an individual. This world is a lot more harsh than any MMO out there, with tons of PKers and KSers that’d probably piss you off a lot more than than Gnome who keeps ganking you in game. The in game world is quite diverse so there are many places to discover. The graphics are realistic (duh) so you shouldn’t have any problems with that. This game is probably the best game out there. And by the way, the best part… is that it’s free to play.
The good
-Intense graphics
-Massive Player base
-TONS of classes
-Diverse areas
-Intense storyline
-Tons of armors to choose from
The bad
-Killstealers galore
-PKfest
-Difficulty setting
-Gets dull on certain occasions
-Scammers
Thirteen1 is an independent, online based, professionally made free-to-read games magazine created in East Yorkshire, UK. Each new issue is released on the 13th of every month at 13.00 GMT. Thirteen1 have published 15 issues to date, as well as 2 supplements, covering a wide variety of titles from multiple-platforms.
Onrpg Comic Issue #9: Baby Face
By Kei Beneza (Dividelife), OnRPG Journalist

Pardus Review: Space is the Final Frontier
Pardus Review: Space is the Final Frontier
By Vincent Haoson (Vincenthaoson), OnRPG Journalist
Pardus is a graphics-based browser online game that puts you in the seat of a space pilot making his way in Space. Your goal is to eventually get to the point where you are now piloting the biggest ships and being the biggest name in the known Pardus Universe.
Buckling down
As expected from a browser game like this, Pardus follows the usual setup when it comes to in-game goals. That is to earn big by doing whatever it is available on the game. You are given a number of things to accomplish that goal. The game hurls at you the usual gameplay. Do quests, mine, buy and sell are the options that are given to you. The game mixes the use of battle strategy with business. This shouldn’t be really surprising as most of the games on this line follow almost the same gameplay.
Resources Rich
Pardus may not be original in terms of the gameplay but the game saves itself by giving you a huge library in terms of trading. Normally, you have about 3-4 resources you can use in browser games, in Pardus however, you get about 20 resources you can trade in the market.
If you would look at the big picture, the huge tradable item library is not really all that. Collecting resources does give you the sense of adventure because you would have to actually travel to get those items but the feeling is only temporary. As you continue on playing, collecting the resources would eventually become a chore and you’d rather find a different means on collecting.
As a mere pilot
Of course what would a space online game be without ships. Pardus nurtures the spaceship pilot feel by providing you the means of owning a spaceship and piloting it in-game. Normally, in a browser-based game like Pardus, piloting a ship is done through text, Pardus, however does away with texts and uses graphics as your piloting means.
This gives the game a little something to look forward to because you would be greeted by graphics instead of being bombarded by texts. However, you shouldn’t expect much with what you see because the game graphics are not really that visually stunning. The thing about Pardus’ graphics is that travelling in-game could be quite a chore, especially when you would notice the frame refresh whenever you click on the map. Aside from the refresh problems, Pardus have any major problems in terms of providing you controls over your ship.
Building up your game
Pardus not only provides you the ships you can use but also allows you to customize your ships to your liking. The ships you buy serves as the overall template to your ship design, you can equip your ship with weapons, armament and what not. What I liked about the game’s ship customization is that it allows you enough free reign to play but limits you enough so that your ship wouldn’t be too imbalanced if you go against players of the same level. The harmonious mix of limits and customization gives the game a little something more to offer than other browser games out. However, this shouldn’t be much of a surprise given that the nature of the game’s about space and space ships.
Building your character
Aside from building up your ship, Pardus also allows character build up. Aside from the ship stats you also have your character stats. Every character made in Pardus starts off with a pre-determined set of stats and the gains your stats would eventually earn are determined by your gameplay. The character stats is a nice way of adding the player’s gameplay into the whole mix. This gives something like of a signature for your character in-game because the way your character’s stats add up shows what kind of gameplay your character is using. This game system is a plus for the game because it gives you an identifying mark for your Pardus character. Though this wouldn’t be such a big deal for a lot of players I still think this is one of the things that encourage players to come back.
Buildings
Aside from taking care of your ship, the Pardus game system also has buildings included in the gameplay. You are given a sizable area to build structures that gives you resources. This would be your primary income earner in the late stages of your game. The resource structures provide you the alternative route of earning in Pardus. Having your own resource structures makes it easier for you to do trades and even build up your own ship. Adding this element into the whole gameplay makes you push past the battle strategy setup and forces you to also think of resource building tactics. This change from one tactic to another gives the game more scope and adds something that normally you wouldn’t find in browser games like this.
Premium Accounts and balance
If there is one thing that I liked about Pardus, its that the premium accounts and the free-to-play accounts do not really have that much of a big difference in terms of ship strength and character stats. Though one cannot deny the advantages Pardus provides for Premium account users, the advantages are sort of convenience centered.
This would mean that majority of the things Pardus offers to premium users are things that would help you make your Pardus experience less laborious. This says much about the game’s giving importance to balance above all else. This gives the game at least a level playing field for all subscribers, which some browser games tend to overlook.
Conclusion
All in all, I can say that Pardus is one of those Browser games that are under appreciated due to the lack of any marketing power but has something to offer. Visually I can’t say I was impressed but the graphics does it work, gameplay wise, it has a stable and enjoyable system. If your someone looking for a space themed fix that is not just battle centric but also resource centric then Pardus is a game just for you.
Pros:
– The game is graphics heavy
– Gameplay starts with a tutorial
– Game is balanced between premium users and free to play users.
Cons:
– The game can be tedious in the late stages
– The game’s graphics is not that visually stunning
– The game pace is slow.