Yearly Archives: 2009

Blade & Soul

Blade & Soul is an action-oriented MMORPG developed by Team Bloodlust and Published by NCSoft. Based on the creative mind of famous South Korean artiest “Hyung Tae-Kim”, Blade & Soul brings the world of Asian martial arts fantasy to life in this massively multiplayer online universe. Create your hero. Hone your martial arts skills. Unlock the secrets of Qing Gong. Choose your faction. Conquer your enemies. Bring honor to your clan.

Features:

Fantasy and Martial-Arts Combat: Use true Kung-Fu and weapon-based techniques to defeat enemies, as well as the ancient art of Qing Gong to move freely through the environment.

Impressive character customization: With initial character creation giving players access to multiple hair styles, facial structures, eye color, height, and body sliders, B&S has one of the most well developed character creation systems of any MMORPG to date.

Compelling storyline: Take your character on a quest for revenge as they try to defeat evil, with themes and cutscenes that come straight out of a classic martial-arts film.

Strong PvE and PvP features: PvE players have access to solo dungeons, randomized labyrinths, open boss fights and more, while PvP players will have acccess to open-world PvP, arena and battleground-based combat, so there is something for everyone to enjoy.

Warrior Epic Review: Your Hall of Warriors

By Jeffrey Kerkdijk (Hyarume), OnRPG Journalist

 

Warrior Epic is a free to play Hack-and-Slash Multiplayer RPG. Even through the servers are capable of having thousands of players online, you will only play the game in teams of five players. The whole game feels old, there are no customizable characters, and there is one character for every class. You start the game with just a fighter and you can change this later in the game by unlocking the other classes. Everything is pre-customized and if you are a fighter and you see another fighter the chances are likely that you look exactly the same (the only thing you can customize is armor). The game isn’t about you as just one character, instead you get a hall. The hall can be filled with all the warriors you have unlocked and you can use them as you want. You can upgrade you’re warriors with a skill tree than you can click upon. You can also enhance you’re weapon with another fighter.

 

Crazy for Dungeons 

Warrior epic is all about dungeon crawling, and this takes place in randomized dungeons. They are fun for a while but the game isn’t exactly rewarding for the players. Sure, you get some gold and some items. But this is all you are going to do. Do mission and quests in randomized dungeons. Most of these dungeons don’t take longer than 15 minutes to complete, making Warrior Epic a great game for casual play.

 

Throughout the dungeons you have three lives. If you lose them and don’t have a healing sub class, you die. If you die three times, you lose all the XP gained during that run. There are no such things as health potions that drop off enemies. The health potions can only be brought in the cash shop. Ask yourself the question: do you really want to pay for health potions? I don’t.  If you die three times, you become a spirit. Now you can revive at your hall or at a sanctuary or you can give a team member a buff by enhancing their weapon. Warriors can also find monster spirits and they can be used to revive a fallen party member.

 Evil Dungeon Lord

 

The other aspect of the game is your hall. The hall can be customized and you can add new rooms and such. In the hall you can also strengthen your warriors. If you go into the war room, you can join up with other players and actually get to play the game. There are three modes to play, Campaign, Adventure and Player versus Player. Campaign is like adventure but told in a story. Player versus Player is currently in the process of being released. It is meant to be for everyone above level 10.

 

The Classes 

When you are making a group, it is going to be like the typical ‘healer, tank and DPS’ setup. There are a few unique classes and they are the Pangolin with the sub class option to be Shaman or Tamer. They aren’t human and they use elemental magic and if you get shaman as a sub class can put down totems as well, these totems are useful and can be used as a method of crowd control. The enemies will attack the totem as soon as you set them up. The tamer has the ability to call on creatures.

 

There is also a trapper class, which is a sub class of the assassin, which deals damage with firearms. Then there is the Archer with some unique aspects as well: they can become a warden, who can play music on the bowstrings for buffs or debuffs. The classes are pretty amazing. For the magic lovers you have the Illusionist class, with the spellbinder, and necromancer sub classes. The necromancers will have the option to call upon the dead and bring them back to life as minions. The spellbinder can manipulate the enemy by messing with his head. Last but not the least, there is the Devotress class. These sword and shield wielding sentinels are paladin-like who can fight melee and are good at some serious tanking, but can also heal right from the start.

 Warrior Epic

 

Some Remaining Bugs

There is a lot going on in Warrior Epic, but there are still a lot of bugs and flaws to it. The game is far from being stable and it isn’t wise to play it at this early stage. The visuals are decent, they aren’t in line with most other games but they do just fine. The music of the game isn’t half bad either. The gameplay of the game gets repetitive real quick. The dungeons are randomized but also fairly small and do get boring really fast.  The servers aren’t stable at the moment, the game suffers from severe latency lag to sudden disconnects at times. The XP rate is too slow, you will notice doing the same dungeon again and again just to be able to do the next one again and again. And the randomizing doesn’t add much to make it more interesting. If you do manage to get into a decent guild and get good groups going, the game can be a blast!!

 

In Conclusion 

I think one of the biggest concerns for the player is the the cash shop, which is going to sell health potions. And if you die three times you lose all of the XP you earned in that run. This can be fairly frustrating. Overall, Warrior Epic is a decent game. But there are still a lot of issues with this game. If you are a casual player and into dungeon crawling you might want to check out Warrior epic, but perhaps you should wait for a few patches and fixes before trying it out.

 

Pros:
– Great Classes
– Action-ish Gameplay
– Great for casual play
– The Hall.

Cons:
– 15 – 25 minutes and you are done with a dungeon
– Doing dungeons over and over (The XP rate)
– Customization
– Cash shopped Health potions.

Angels Online: Floating Island Preview

IGG’s Angels Online team is excited to announce a ton of new content slated for release in the new expansion-Floating Island. When the update goes live in the near future, players will discover new maps, new NPCs, new equipment, and even new skills and a new character class.

New Class
All players will have access to a brand new class- Assassins. Assassins focus on speed and accuracy. In addition to the basic melee attack skills, Assassins will have a special copycat ability that will make them dangerous in any situation.

New Maps
Adventurers who are keen on exploring the secrets of new maps will enjoy seven new scenes and an imposing instance included with the release of Floating Island.

The island itself floats above Dark City. What surprises are the ancient locals and their robotic protectors hiding? Players will also discover an ancient cave in the middle of Eden. Why has the mysterious Sunshine Palace been buried underground for so many years? The answers to these questions and more are waiting to be found if you can overcome the challenges and obstacles surrounding them.

New Bosses and New NPCs
With brand new maps will come new stories, new NPCs and, of course, new bosses. From mighty boas that are as powerful as giant dragons to massive robots controlled by ancient technology, the denizens of the Floating Island are fiercely protective of their territory and their secrets. Naturally, the Evil Lyceum has its own devious plots for players to overcome.

New Equipment
The Angels Online team will also be releasing various brand new pieces of equipment. Powerful gleaming weapons, imposing heaven suits, and amazing mounts and robots like the Polar Bear, Dragon Boat and Pegasus will give players plenty of new items to add to their characters’ collections.

New Skills
With the release of Floating Island, the character level limit will increase to 140. With more levels comes a series of super skills and stances, including two brand new skills for each class.

 

 

Angels Online - Floating Islands Expansion

Dungeons and Dragons Online Review: Maintains P2P Class in F2P Goodness

Dungeons and Dragons Online Review: Maintains P2P Class in F2P Goodness
By Kei Beneza (dividelife), OnRPG Journalist

 

Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) is one of the most cherished Role Playing Games of all time. From the dreadful Beholders to the Majestic dragons, who could ever resist the first Role Playing Game that bedazzled the world of gaming? Although Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson managed to hook people with such a display of imagination, could a Massively Multiplayer Online (MMO) version have the same effect? Dungeons and Dragons has been a around longer than the World of Warcraft and Warhammer universes, giving birth to numerous spin-offs of Tolkien-based characters that appealed to a wide variety of gamers.

 

The series became overly popular in the gaming meta and is still cherished even up to this point, spawning an array of different stories and clone scenarios like Forgotten Realms and Dragon Lance. The question is, can an old gaming benchmark do well against its established competitors in their own turf?

Immersion

When I first came into the world of Dungeons & Dragons Online (DDO), I can’t help but be overwhelmed with how well they projected the Storytelling game in the visual plane. It’s a very good-looking game in my opinion. The graphics aren’t really that of the nextgen era, but the game did achieve its well-deserved visuals.

Disappointment starts

After installing the game, the first thing I saw the game’s lack of races. D&D had always been about racial superiority, with special abilities and tactics that are exclusive to each kin. During the character creation interface, I was given the choice to pick between: Humans, Elf, Halfling, Dwarf, Drow and Warforged. I was quite disappointed at how much the game lacked races. If I remember correctly, the original RPG had Half-orcs and Half-elves at our disposal as well. Drows AKA Dark Elves are more or less the banes of the D&D, and much like the legendary Drizzt do’Urden are supposed to be rather antagonistic. Drows also serve as the secret characters in the game, meaning you have to perform certain conditions in order to use them. Warforged—–I am not familiar with. They are basically an array of Tree people and are pretty new in the series. One good part however, is that the game did retain each races’ specialty. This means that each race still has their very own exclusive skills to show.

 

Drows in DDO 

 

Where’s the Epic Paladin?

Exactly what is an MMO without character classes? (a whole load of bull). Yes, the game did retain most of its traditional classes namely: Wizard, Sorcerer, Ranger, Rogue, Monk, Fighter, Barbarian, Bard, Cleric and Paladin. There’s a lot of classes to choose from so feel free to try em’ all out. Although most of these classes are retained, the game doesn’t feature prestige classes such as the Blackguard, Epic Paladin, and Archmage. The game already has a lot of classes, so I guess it’s not that big of a deal. But if an asian MMO can provide players with 40 subclasses to choose from, why not, right?

As broad as its ancestor

One of the best features this game has to offer is its broad chatracter creation interface. You can use ‘feats’ which are special enhancements to further separate you from other players, so it’s safe to say that no two players are alike in this game.

 

You’ll gain more stuff to pump your character up as you progress in the game. Experience points is earned pretty much like any MMO, generally through quests, dungeons and special scenarios in the world map. The game also reserves a favor system that lets you spend another form of currency known as ‘favors’ which grants you special items to further compliment your playstyle.

 

Combat is perhaps what this game is overly famous for. There are no other MMO that let you experience the basis of combat better than DDO. Even back then during its pen and paper stages, Dungeons and Dragons was always more combat oriented than other pen and paper games. Certain actions such as ‘roll’ and ‘block’ are definitely something you can only find in DDO. The game’s combat system is a combination of the traditional MMO gameplay and the tactical property of the D&D series. I guess you could say that now you can finally enjoy the godlike combat without having to worry about calculating your attacks and modifiers. Another factor to consider would be the terrain advantage, which lets players use obstructions to hide themselves from enemy attacks. In a way, you can’t say that the game is just another basic ‘tank and spank’ application.

Who you gonna call? HIRELINGS!

Hirelings are similar to the mercenaries of Guild wars, which fills up your party with NPCs if you need an extra hand. Is that monk asking for too much? Why bother asking him for help if you can just hire one? LOL.

Formerly Pay to Play

 

Yes, indeed the game is now FREE TO PLAY! No subscriptions, no extra charges! Just pure nonstop dragon-bashing action! Yes, I’m sure its an indication that it couldn’t keep up with the competition, but hell… an RPG like this in a free to play fashion? What are you waiting for?

 

The Night is Full of Creatures

The verdict

Hmm… first of all, the game does lack a lot of features from the book. When it comes to character classes I could say that Lineage 2 did a whole lot better. Having to lose the ability to reach prestige classes really sucked at some point, especially since another game beat the original to it. The graphics are impressive, with nicely rendered characters that bode well with their well shaded background. This makes exploration tad awesome for those who just want to go around admiring the in game scenery. There’s probably nothing more to ask when it comes to the game’s visuals. It’s excellent beyond reasonable doubt. The sounds aren’t too shabby as well, with excellent bgms that’s sure to bring you that epic feeling.

 

The game copied a lot of elements from other games (particularly other Pay to Play games), but bringing such awesome factors to the world of free to play mania makes this game a savior for F2P players worldwide. The game was populated even in its P2P stage, I’m sure you can see how big of a blessing it is to have this game as F2P. If you’re thinking about playing this game, then by all means GO FOR IT.

 

Pros:
– Tons of classes
– Tons of Races
– One of the best Combat systems in the market
– Diverse areas
– Dungeons, Scripted bosses, PVP, and other P2P stuff now on a F2P game.

 

Cons:
-Doesn’t follow the original book well.
-It’s too much of a clone for an original game.
-Low endgame content value.

Turf Battles Interview: Back to the Battleground

Questions by Jeffrey Kerkdijk, OnRPG Journalist
Answered by AndoSky, Aeria Product Manager

 

Turf Battles a pretty old game brought back from the dead by Aeriagames. How is the game doing? What can AndoSky from AeriaGames tell us about the game? How does the PvP work? How does the class develoment system work? Read on to find out!

 

Onrpg: How is Turf Battles doing at the moment? How did the Closed Beta test go?
Ando: While the initial Closed Beta was successful in identifying the direction Turf Battles was to take and what changes would make it a success, we have decided to release a 2nd Closed Beta to test the massive changes to the game’s client, servers and even the graphic engine. These large-scale changes have created a need for an additional testing period to iron out the kinks before Open Beta can be released.

 

Onrpg: Turf Battles originally closed down from its previous host, why did you choose to bring the game back on the market?
Ando: Aeria Games is constantly looking to expand its portfolio of game titles and with Turf Battles there was a profound outcry from the considerably large player base of the older host to bring back the game under new management. Aeria has worked with the knowledgeable player base to identify the issues that caused the game to fail and have worked with the development team to bring about changes that will make Turf Battles a successful title.

 

Turf Battles Class 

 

Onrpg: What elements of the game, according to you, makes players keep playing Turf battles? Why should we stay hooked?
Turf Battles is at its heart, a PvP game. As the name implies, there will be a strong element of ownership of “Turfs” for which there will be constant battles for superiority and control by “tribes” and their allies. Once players have captured these areas, they have access to special gems or control over taxes and other benefits. However players must remain on their guard for other invaders and defend their land. The high maximum level means players can continue to level up through the different “turfs” for greater challenges and rewards.

 

Onrpg: What makes Turf Battles special, what features does it have that makes it “Unique”?
Turf Battles has a strong element of competition and ownership that allows players to build strong friendships and work as a team to be the best. While a single player can sneak and capture a turf for a limited time, it is the strongest tribe or teams of players that will be able to conquer the land and hold off invaders. Each player individually can have the best armor and gear but to be able to reach the deepest depths of the game, they will need strong allies and friends.

 

Onrpg: Turf battles has a very interesting class development system, how do you manage to keep balance between all the players for PvP?
Classes in Turf Battles can be optimized very closely to the player’s wishes, but ultimately have strength and weaknesses to them that can be exploited by enemies. Red and Blue Mages classes suffer from a lack of high defense, so while they can often cause pain, they can take very little of it and many of their attacks are slower and require mana points to use. Blades Warriors generally can not attack as high and are slower, but can take enormous amounts of damage, often being able to charge into battle as juggernauts, distracting enemies while others attack using distance. Fist Warriors have been and attack power, rushing in on top of players before they are even noticed, causing large amounts of damage in a short time. They do not have the large defense of the Blade Warrior but can withstand a sizeable onslaught. Archers use the speed of the fist and the range of the mage classes, but have lower health and defense. Each class plays caters to the play style of certain players and each has its own fan base.

 

Onrpg: Could you tell describe to us in short how PvP works in Turf Battles, and what makes it so rewarding for the players to do?
PvP in general is centralized in several “turfs” and arenas that both offer chances for players to test their skills as a team or solo and provides special access to monsters with unique items and gems that allow players to further the power of their characters. It is possible to engage in PvP outside of these areas, but killing other players without provocation can be penalized and repeat offenders names slowly turn red to reflect their actions. Additionally, players who do not kill other players outside of turfs and arenas will see their name slowly turn blue to symbolize their nature. PvP in arenas and turfs is generally unrestricted except for level brackets, allowing players to use any strategy available to them to engage their enemy.

 

Onrpg: Having two races and a few customization options to choose from when creating a character, what other customization options are there available for the players?
There are plans in place for a third race to be released in the future, but the main focus of customization are in the characters’ gear and weaponry. Every piece of equipment in the game has the ability to be upgraded and strengthened by use of gems or by crafting the gear yourself by gathering materials from monsters. Players with better gear are stronger, and the weapons they carry can reflect this strength by glowing when upgraded.

 

Onrpg: having several classes to play as, what class do you like the most yourself, and why do you prefer that class?
I enjoy the Fist Warrior, because it is a good blend of tanking abilities and DPS. The class is pretty versatile in the later game, and you get to use giant claws as weapons. Which is pretty much every persons fantasy.

 

Onrpg: Turf Battles is not a new game as the game has been out before for several years , are you planning to deliver any new content? If so, could you tell us some about it?
New content has already been developed and should be released soon. This content includes and entirely new map with new quests, monsters NPCs and whole new experience for players that are familiar with the original game. However, since the game was not directly picked up from the original host, the current game differs from the old Turf Battles, sharing more characteristics with the Korean title “Sephiroth” which is limited to Korean players and therefore would be considered “new” to Turf Battles veterans.

 

Onrpg: How would you describe Turf Battles, as a game where you solo trough or as one where you team up and battle side by side?
Turf Battles will allow players to make their own choices in this department for the majority of the game, as a single player can tackle most challenges in the game, provided their gear can handle the work. However, there are certain dungeons and challenges, especially later in the game, that would be almost impossible or actually require a party or team to complete. There are currently two dungeons that require a party to even enter. Owning turfs and other areas is made much easier by belonging to a strong tribe or having good allies to both capture and defend these areas.

 

Onrpg: Turf Battles takes place in the world of Fomalhaut, what makes this world so interesting to explore?
Fomalhaut covers a vast area of land with greatly differing features spread out across the landscape. While human characters start out in the sub-tropical area of South Daria, complete with warm beaches, palm tress and rolling hills, the Nephilim or elves being in the alpine area of Exile Valley or Daria, a landlocked area in the mountains with great lakes, pine forests and ancient mysterious structures. Players can explore to find other hidden areas of their land and journey to other islands and corners of the map to barren wastelands with frequent dust storms and frozen tundra where snow is always falling. Much of the landscape is beautifully designed and imagined and fun to explore.

 

Turf Battles Combat 

 

Onrpg: What is your favorite feature of the game, and why do you like that feature the most?
My favorite feature of the game is the Islands system. This system allows players to capture Islands for their tribes. Once captured, the Island must be defended against other players. The benefits of the Islands are really awesome for the tribe that holds them, and since this mechanic is 24/7 it adds a really great feeling of immersion to the game.

 

Onrpg: The game has currently finished closed beta testing, when will the game be open to the public?
Turf Battles is currently going into Closed Beta 2 and will continue into Open Beta once certain new features are completed and have been tested.

 

Onrpg: What kind of premium items can be expected to be in the game’s cash shop?
An Item Mall will not be added to the game until Open Beta has begun and significant headway has been made with several important features of gameplay. Premium items that have been considered are several transformation cards with special abilities, as well as many temporary boost items, such as increased attack power, defense and other limited time items.

 

Onrpg: Could you tell us a bit more about the pet-raising system?
Pets can be attained from completing a quest or purchasing a “Seed of Life” from another player and taking it to certain NPCs. Once there, the seed is turned into an Egg, allowing the player to name the pet and for the egg to be displayed next to the player during gameplay. The egg grows as the player spends time in game, at first requiring the player to constantly check on the egg to feed it, then at level 5 to turn into one of a couple variations of a puppy depending on how the player fed the egg. The pet then can interact with the player, performing several commands and announcing when it is hungry. When the pet reaches level 15, not only does the pet change into one of 4 new variations, but gains stats that can help the player. AS the pets continues to level, players can add new stats to the pet. The pets can change once again at level 25 into one of 4 final forms and can begin to change color to give different ability boosts based on how the player has been feeding their pet. Pets can eventually each level 100 and continue to change color based on how they are feed.

 

Onrpg: Thank you! 

Bulletstar

You will start as a lowlife junky, and you need to work yourself up by doing criminal activities. Stealing money, dealing drugs, killing other criminals and a lot more…
 
Ofcourse, you can do this with a friend! There are some options that you can do together! For example: Robbing a bank with some friends! 
Bulletstar – The gamble circuit
We also have some gamble options, whe call it our Gamble Circuit! You can make some good money with it, or lose it.. BIGTIME!
 
For example whe have slotmachines, blackjacks, numbergames, and a lottery. Some of those options have an owner, who can manage it. 

Call of Duty MMO??

Activision is said to have aggressive expansion plans for its record breaking Call Of Duty franchise, with a new report suggesting that the publisher is exploring the idea of releasing a COD MMO.
The LA Times claims that Activision has deployed a third studio to develop Call Of Duty titles alongside series creator Infinity Ward and COD 3 and COD: World At War developer Treyarch.
 
The news comes shortly after Activision Blizzard CFO Thomas Tippl said that the company plans “to test and ultimately launch additional online monetisation models” for leading franchises like COD.
 
Since debuting in 2003, the COD franchise has sold more than 48 million units, with 2007’s Modern Warfare shifting 14.4 million copies. Modern Warfare 2, which reportedly cost between $40 and $50 million to produce, broke entertainment launch records following its release last week, selling more than eight million copies and generating $550 million in its first five days on the market.
 
Source: Edge: check it for the video!

Call of Duty MMO?