Yearly Archives: 2011

ROSH Online: The Return of Karos

 

ROSH Online: The Return of Karos brings players into an updated world built off its predecessor. Based in a world torn by blood, the once peaceful ROSH council has fallen to the Ismaul clan. Now warriors around the kingdom are taking up arms to usurp the Ismaul and restore the council that once brought peace and democracy to the land.

Features:

 

Faster Leveling, More Rewards: ROSH offers tons of quests and fast leveling speeds to ensure players can access more job upgrades and power ups faster than your typical MMORPG.

Extreme Instance Dungeon: Experience a new competitive PvE experience in which players battle other players in their level group to kill the most monsters in an instance.

Crafting: Through hunting, fishing, and mining among other professions, players will obtain the raw materials to forge powerful armor sets.

Guild Warfare: Test your faction’s metal against your foes in both the arena system and full blown siege warfare!

 

DragonSoul Begins Open Best Testing

DragonSoul Begins Open Beta Testing

 


Neonga has started the open beta phase of its free-to-play PvP-MMORPG DragonSoul. The right to rule the eight kingdoms will be hard fought as players prove their might as a Warrior, Hunter, Mage or Assassin.

 

 

The DragonSoul realm lies broken and in shambles. For now one can survive by mere weapon skill and some luck. But as the kingdoms grow, leaders must rise. To be king you will need to be strategic, you will need to be cunning and if that doesn’t work, you will need to make believers out of your enemies with your blade. With over 1,000 quests, adventurers will be immersed into a unique background story inspired by Asian mythology while mastering the four character classes.

 

 

Key Features:

– Highly dynamic politics system imbued with spite, malice and greased with gold.
– Numerous skill system with over 1,000 different combinations
– 52+ extensive maps, zones and dungeons.
– Over 100 Pets wait to take your side as you stride into battle.
– Mounted Combat: Mounts can be used in combat and offer space for up to 4 players.

Zero Online: Mecha Madness!

Zero Online: Mecha Madness!

By Jerrico Tan (JetSet), OnRPG Journalist

 

 

 

Zero Online is a free-to-play sci-fi MMORPG made by TQ digital. Set in a futuristic mecha world in the outer limits, the game could be hailed as TQ Digital’s most unique asset, taking a route of scifi and mechs instead of sword and board.

 

 

The game’s main selling point is its Gundam inspired sci-fi theme. Even if it sounds like a rip-off from a major mecha franchise, it has plenty of factors making it a fun MMO. And together with the game’s extensive unit development, ZO would still undoubtedly give players tons of entertainment.

 

 

First Impressions



When players enter the Zero Universe for the first time, they are made to select one of three unit types: The Infantry, The artillery and the newly added Psyche types. These are generally the melee, gunner, and archer classes respectively. Each of them has their own unique set of skills that are well balanced in PvP. While the lack of class selection might be disappointing, the game’s unique unit development features like weapon proficiencies and pilotage (more on that later) would still get players glued to the game.

 

 

Players then will be introduced to a short scene about their unit arriving to the Steel Warship, where all pilots of the alliance gather and trade items. The place is like a heap of metal platforms with airstrip-like launch pods everywhere. And might I add that watching your Unit blast its jetpack thrusters to space is just dazzling.

 


 

The Zero Universe is huge, and there are plenty of places to explore. Once you get outside the Steel Warship you could travel to the Moon, Venus and of course on Earth’s surface.Most of the terrain fields are just static pixels in an isometric perspective so the environment details are not that impressive. But on the other hand, the developers still did a great job of not making the space fields empty by adding awesome 3D rendered planets and some satellite looking flying objects. Also, players shouldn’t worry about getting lost in space for this game also has an autopilot feature just like in many other TQ titles. With just a click of a button the autopilot will take you to your selected map NPC/area.

 


 

The game’s combat effects are also commendable. The 3D Unit movements when tearing up bots are surprisingly fluid and never looked stiff. Units’ skill effects (lightning effects, lasers) however, were only rendered in high-res 2.5D pixels and are quite unconvincing. Needless to say, presenting most parts of the game in 2.5D made the visuals look and feel half-cooked. Not that the game’s overall graphics totally sucked but I would really love to see this game in full 3D like Eve Online.

 

 

Gameplay Features

The goal of the game is pretty straightforward. Players just need to reach the maximum level and have the best equipment in the game so they can complete the toughest missions the fastest.

 


 

Achieving that task is just a piece of cake because leveling up in ZO is super fast. Just finishing the basic training quests would instantly boost your level to 20 and blasting just a dozen of the starter bots outside the steel warship would give you a level up. Also, if players have obtained a military badge in the game, they will have the privilege to train their unit even if they’re offline (I logged out at lvl32 and when I signed in again my unit jumped to level 45). And in addition to all of that, the latest expansion kicked the game’s maximum level cap up a notch for a longer gaming experience (from lvl180 ->lvl.190).

 

 

Taking up and completing missions that are mostly kill-quests and talking to some NPCs help players reach the maximum level cap. There are also warship missions that players can sign up for with a squad. These instances offer the best experience and equipment so I would recommend not skipping out on them just because you can’t find a party right away.

 


 

There are loads of weapons available in Zero Online. Every unit class has exclusive weapons to use. Infantry mechs can only use melee weapons, which vary from swords, sabers and lances. Guns with elements are solely for artillery units and the Psyche units are only able to use their bows with various elements.

 

 

Higher leveled weapon types require a specific weapon mastery level. Mastering a certain weapon is no easy task for it requires lots of monster killing in order to raise your mastery to the next level. Luckily for cash players, mastery CDs are available in the cash shops should they instantly want to increase their mastery level.

 

 

Forging items is also essential for unit development. Items with better quality would undoubtedly give bigger bonuses to the Unit’s stats. Rare forge items called meteors are needed in order to upgrade items. The forge success rate of an item depends on the meteor’s quality. Low-quality ones are obtainable but higher quality meteors (with 100% success rate) are an exclusive item in the Cash shop.

 


 

My personal favorite feature in ZO is the Unit’s transformation. Every player’s Unit can be transformed into an upgraded version once you reach a set level. Apart from a cooler appearance, new skills are also unlocked. Furthermore, when players reach lvl 135, they are granted access to the game’s Pilotage system. This system gives compensation to the lack of classes by evolving the mechs to a certain kind of Unit Class. Evolving to one special type unlocks special perks that are effective against a specific unit’s weapon mastery.

 

 

With all these features at hand, players would probably spend hours on Unit growth so that they can last longer in the game during PvP.

 

 

Combat (PK and PvP)



PK is available for players once they have reached lvl100. Players can turn on their PK mode anytime, but they must consider the game’s PK jail system and its consequences for abusing too many players via pk. Consequences consist of loss of exp for minor offenders and losing inventory items for the worst offenders. Useful UI is in place so you can prevent yourself from causing harm to party members or clan members in the case that mass PK wars break out.

 

 

PK tournaments are also held weekly and monthly. The tournaments are split and categorized into three ranking groups. Top ranked pilots are definitely rewarded greatly. Additionally, dueling is also available as a safe alternative for battle hungry players seeking harmless practice.

 

 

Some Uncertain Voids

Although the Zero Universe is a perfect place for mecha lovers, the game still has lots of inconvenient flaws. Among them, the hefty grinding players must endure tops the list. Farming monsters is inevitable if you want your units to improve.

 

 

Second to the grind is the vast power gap between cash shoppers and free players. Better upgrade items are exclusively available in the item shop and there is only one official weekly event that rewards players with Cash points (ZPs). If you want to compete be sure not to miss this weekly event as the cash shop items really are a huge boon in your quest for the best mech.

 

 

The Long and Short of it

With the game running in 2.5D, the system requirements of the game shouldn’t be a problem to hardcore gaming PCs. The game only requires a Pentium 4 PC, 256mb RAM and 128mb Video RAM. So in layman’s terms, if your PC was manufactured 5 years ago then this game would still run on your rig smoothly.

 

 

And despite having some inconvenient drawbacks, Zero Online is still a great game. The PK system is the primary feature that makes this one of the many competitive MMORPGs in the market. Credits, as well, to the game’s extensive Unit development system.

 

 

Mecha fans that enjoy seeing robots charge through swarms of renegade bots and watching them explode to heaps of scrap metal would definitely like this game. But in terms of depth and game system dynamics, I’d say Zero Online still has plenty of room for improvement.

 

Overall Verdict 7/10


The Good:

*Mecha inspired presentation (with tons of space travel)

*Auto Pilot feature

*Unit Transformations

*Weapon Masteries

*Extensive Unit development

*PK mode

 

The Bad:

*Graphics are in 2.5D

*Lots of grinding

*Lack of Unit classes

*Important upgrade items only available in cash shop

LOCO: Evolution Now Live Worldwide

LOCO: Evolution Now Live Worldwide

 

 

Alaplaya has launched the highly anticipated LOCO: Evolution update to players worldwide! LOCO: Evolution is a free-to-play MOBA-styled game with RPG elements, and features all the tactical gameplay and third-person action the original LOCO is known for. Evolution brings with it a persistent city for players to explore, a new faction known as the Legion of Heaven, a new game mode, and a slew of other new features.

 

 

LOCO: Evolution players now have a place to congregate and engage with brand-new NPCs and real-world friends (or foes) alike: the city of Arhonnas. Combatants can roam this persistent city and interact with a variety of shopkeepers and quest givers, allowing them to pick up new missions, upgrade collected items, purchase pets, trade items, store inventory, and even more perks previously not available in the original LOCO.

 

 

A new game mode, Touchdown, has also made its way to LOCO: Evolution for those looking for a different sort of tactical challenge. In this football-inspired game, players are tasked with carrying a flag housed in the center in the map to their opponent’s flag point. Each flag successfully carried to the opposing flag point counts as a point, and the team with the highest score when time expires is proclaimed the victor.

 

 

Coinciding with these additions, alaplaya has also implemented a substantial amount of technical upgrades to the LOCO world. Along with an updated UI, which includes easy-to-navigate menus and a revised tutorial for newcomers to the game, Evolution also gives players brand-new achievement and matchmaking systems. The achievement system sets special targets for players and makes it easier for brave combatants to obtain new heroes, while the matchmaking system ensures that there is no wait time to enter a match, letting LOCO: Evolution players get right into the action.

League of Legends Volibear Patch Preview

League of Legends Volibear Patch Preview

By Darren Henderson (DizzyPW), OnRPG Editor-in-Chief

 

 

RiotGame’s hugely popular MOBA, League of Legends, has revealed a preview of their upcoming patch to release Volibear. This patch preview has heads spinning as the core mechanics of laning and jungling are being rocked to the core, and many veteran players will have to completely revise their current style of play to adjust. But before getting into these details, let’s look at Volibear himself!

 

 

Volibear initially seems to fit into the heavy pressure tanky dps role, with the ability to rapidly chase and CC a foe and then unleash hell on them. His abilities are as follows:

 

Rolling Thunder: Volibear drops to all fours and runs faster if chasing an enemy champion. The first enemy he attacks is knocked into the air.

Frenzy: Volibear’s repeated attacks grant him additional attack speed. Once Volibear has repeatedly attacked four times, he can perform a vicious bite on his target.

Majestic Roar: Volibear lets out a powerful roar that damages and slows enemies. Minions and monsters are feared as well.

Thunder Claws (Ultimate): Volibear channels the power of the storm causing his attacks to blast his targets with lightning that bounces to other nearby enemies.

Chosen of the Storm (passive): Volibear heals rapidly for a few seconds when his health drops to a critical level.

 

 

As you can see his Rolling Thunder gives him the distance closure needed to face off with ranged attackers, while Majestic Roar will hold foes in place once they realize that fleeing is the ideal option. His Frenzy will allow him to stand toe to toe should the opponent choose to duel to the death, and thunder claws will make him an intimidating presence in any team fight. Chosen of the Storm seems there just to give opponents a false sense of confidence, tricking them to commit to a duel that they will be unable to win.

 

Sivir Rework

The long awaited Sivir rework is finally coming. Her passive (based on dodge) is being phased all like all things dodge. In exchange she is gaining a movement speed increase when she attacks a foe, making her more apt for chasing enemies but less skilled when fleeing. She is also gaining a toggle on her ricochet so that it can be used to give her ‘double strikes’ by toggling it on right after a standard basic attack. Another major complaint in her kit is that she is presented as a ranged DPS but lacks the range of most of her archetype. This is being extended to allow her to stay far from the fray when danger is present.

 

 

Minion Rework

Minions are getting their damage nerfed greatly in an attempt to make laners in the laning phase more aggressive. The logic behind this is that there will be less penalty for striking out at an opponent because the minions will take a smaller chunk of your health as your pursue your foe through them. Will this be the actual case? Hopefully next week we can test it out in actual combat and see for ourselves

 

 

Jungle and HP Pot Rework

This is the real buzz around the campfire that has players up in arms. First off, hp potions are losing some of their effectiveness to make lane sustain via multiple hp pots a thing of the past, or at least not as effective as previous builds made them out to be. In addition to this, jungle mobs are being weakened, and will be offering less experience and gold. Also, some of the smaller camps will be offering players new buffs never before present on Summoner’s Rift. To counter balance this all, the respawn time is being reduced so a constant stream of monsters will be available for the jungler to farm. And finally, they are nerfing the effectiveness of lizard’s red buff when used by a melee fighter.

 

 

All this combines to a new way of seeing the game! Junglers will have to decide when is ideal to gank lanes, rather than farming through all their side of the map and then ganking because there is nothing better to do. Depending on what the buffs are, we might see some interesting dynamics change in the laning phase as mid lane rushes over to farm wraiths of wolves to gain a buff advantage over their opponent.

 

 

Stay tuned in December as Hhean will give a more detailed review of all these changes and how it has changed League of Legends. If you’ve never played League of Legends I suggest checking out our epic forum thread or Riot Game’s website for more info!

Terraria Patch 1.1 Coming December 1st!

Terraria Patch 1.1 Coming Soon

 

 

Re-logic, developer of Terraria, has revealed that they will be releasing their largest content update yet on December 1st! This content dubbed version 1.1 will also be available for free to all current owners of the game!

 

 

According to a recent developer post on the forums, the update will add 39 new monsters, four new bosses (check out the trailer for a preview!), three npcs, 222 new items, four armor sets, and 21 accessories!

 

 

Although specific details are being kept hush hush, players can expect a challenging experience the likes of which they never dreamed possible in the Terraria world. A new hard mode awaits those wishing to take revenge on the Guide of hell.

 

 

For those who think the weapons in game are a bit too dull as is, this patch addresses your concerns by adding randomized bonus effects that can be reforged by various npcs! There are also some new unique items coming as well so collectors be prepared to search for the best of the best! A final aesthetic touch to version 1.1 will be improved world generation technology, allowing for better lighting, better backgrounds, and even some interesting physics like flowing water!

 

 

Surprisingly enough, this is only the beginning and Re-logic promises even more content to come on December 15th as a Christmas present for their users. OnRPG will keep an eye on this and bring you more details and they become available.

Star Wars: The Old Republic Companions

Star Wars: The Old Republic Companions

By Remko Molenaar (Proxzor), OnRPG Journalist

 

 

We’re only weeks away from the opening of the long awaited Star Wars MMO and most of us have been invited for several betas so far and have gotten a closer look at this game. In this article I will be giving you a closer look at the companions that you are able to get in SWTOR. These companions will help you in your journey and are even able to go on missions themselves! All the available companions have unique abilities and weapons that they use and thus create a wide variety of gameplay elements.

 

 

Like in every Star Wars movie, the main characters always had a companion everywhere they went; these companions helped them through thick and thin and were even willing to die for their friend. Now you must be wondering how you can acquire one of these good pals to help you with your quests in the Star Wars universe. Well it is fairly simple and everyone will acquire at least one fairly soon. As a Sith Warrior I received a slave that was captured by the Sith and held in prison for a while. She was a treasure hunter from the planet Nar Shaddaa, and after helping her I received her as my companion in future missions for the Sith. Although a useful tool to meet my ends, I realized that keeping her happy was going to be vital to maintaining our relationship for the long-term.

 

 

Every companion has a different motivation and reason why they’ve joined you on your journey. As a Sith warrior I merely received my slave as a gift from my superiors because of my storyline and choices I made within the world of Star Wars. All the companions provide commentary in cutscenes, information on plots and directions, and reveal their own personal charm and perspective. The companions may influence your decision making in dialogues, and you can even earn respect. You can also influence their thought and thus become close friends or even lovers. However it’s not all fun and games. If you make a decision that your companion severely disagrees with, they can just as easily turn against you. It’s a heart breaking feeling seeing a character that helped you through so much and that you have come to rely on leaving you over one or two bad choices. Even if you lack emotional connection to them, if you went ahead and equipped them with valuable gear then it really hurts to lose them! On a side note, the companions can get you access to special side quests and even fill in a spot in your party should you be missing enough people to form it. They’re truly one of the most diverse and useful ‘pet’ systems in an MMO today.

 

 

Not only are the companions great assets on your adventure, they are also able to go do quests on their own which in result earns you a lot of precious items! The companions are able to go to town for example and sell all your useless items that you don’t need anymore. This saves you your endless trips of going to town because your bag is too full to carry anything. Since the Star Wars The Old Republic galaxy is full with rich valuable resources, high-tech schematics, and intriguing opportunities, the companions are a useful aspect of the game to do something for you while you’re busy with other stuff. Because the galaxy has so much to offer you can send off your companions on their own missions to gather valuable crafting items and other valuable resources. They can also craft items for you or undertake their own missions to bring you and your crew a variety of benefits and rewards. If you send one of your crew members away they will be gone for an x amount of seconds depending on the quest that they will have to undertake so keep this in mind if your group is planning a particularly difficult mission soon.

 

 

Because every crew member has a different background, some companions are more proficient with certain skills, and the higher their opinion of you, the better they will perform for you. So it is very important to keep your companions happy. Happy companions are productive companions and can pretty much ensure you get twice as much done for the amount of time you spend playing the game. However the way you specialize them will determine exactly what it is that will make them useful to you. You will be able to select three Crew Skills for your team to train in from among these main categories:

 

Gathering skills:

Archaeology

Bioanalysis

Scavenging

Slicing

 

Crafting Skills:

Armormech

Armstech

Artifice

Biochem

Cybertech

Synthweaving

 

Mission Skills:

Diplomacy

Investigation

Treasure Hunting

Underworld Trading

 

 

As you can see all these skills are really valuable for various missions that they can do while they’re gone and you don’t need them. Each of these main categories is an unique addition to the Crew Skills System. A companion system has been seen before but something like this is rather unique. We have seen several MMORPGs like Guild Wars and Forsaken World use this kind of system but never to the extent that Star Wars is aiming to achieve.

 

 

After extensively testing companions in beta, I have to say I love the concept of companions in Star Wars The Old Republic. I believe it is a fun feature to have in the game and the companions provide so much replayability due to the ways they can change your character’s storyline. Their time saving function is also a life saver for allowing me to get the maximum enjoyment out of my play time when I actually have time to play. It’s an added bonus watching your companion react to your actions and really makes you feel the impact of your decisions on a personal level. Because of the companion system your entire journey becomes a little more unique, and gives you plenty of stories you can share with your friends that are unique to you.