For a few months last year around sept I started hearing about a game called Fallen Earth. I had taken part in a beta test a ways back but never got around to checking out the game again. The concept and approach they were taking always seemed quite interesting to me. I mean, c'mon, who could argue with something that reminds a gamer of pre-cu SWG in some ways?

Lately I noticed information on Fallen Earth has fallen dead silent or just plain false statements about the games current state. This is what caught my attention and made me decide to do this review. I'll be looking into the various problems users have been complaining of. From there I will move onto my view of the game, which is from that of an avid FPS and MMO gamer. Onto the review..

Instead of bothering with a trial of the game I went to my local wal-mart and purchased a copy of it. Wanted to get the full experience without the constrictions of a trial. There was just one issue with this idea... I couldn't get the game to install! So I dug around trying to find a solution. Perhaps a client download? Hm. Can't seem to find a working link. Well, after a few hours I realized my error and got the game to install. Turns out it was my own fault.

Next I started up the launcher, click the register new account button. Within minutes I had all my info filled out in the launcher itself. Simple, problem free. Shortly after I logged in and let the laucher do its thing (Checking file integrity and what not). From there I tweaked my in-game settings from the launcher and I was good to go. Character creation here I come!

The game started up without issue, save for a very momentary pause when it was loading up things for the character select screen. Now one of the first things I noticed very quickly was that the options for character creation are quite limited. Perhaps not as badly as in a cookie cutter MMO, yet still not all that great. I could only choose between two colors for piercings. Few eye colors. As well as being unable to change my height. Fortunately it makes up for it with a okay number of facial options. Like piercings, paint, tattoos (available for the body as well)

After messing around with the character creation screen it was time to get in-game. Shockingly after hitting create and clicking the button to enter the world there was only a short load, that was it. Everything loaded up quickly and smoothly. I spent a moment getting used to the controls as I ran around the tutorial. Such as tab to switch between the crosshair and mouse pointer. Little clunky. I've seen far worse. Overall the controls were quite reasonable.
Now onto the tutorial itself. I ran forward clicked the terminal with the biohazard mission icon over it and was on my way...After spending two minutes trying to figure out how to activate the lifenet system like it was asking me to do. At which point I noticed the Help channel in the chat box. Asked what I was supposed to do since the mission terminal didn't seem to work. Within a moment or two I was told it was the panel to my right. Okay... Wish that was more obvious. Helpful community at least. Thats good. Initial mission? Meh.

After spending a bit more time in-game progressing through the tutorial I became more and more accustomed to the style of the game. Plus the missions improved consierably. Offering much more detail. From that point on the tutorial got me used to equipping items, combat, etc. It did so quite a very indie feel. But I must admit it was enjoyable.

(I know this ends ubruptly)



Last but not least, my closing thoughts on the game and rating(s):

Graphics:
6.5/10 - The graphics aren't top notch. Though they do look nice to me. VERY nice to see something that someone has the guts to make a game that doesn't have everything reflective or glowing as if it was just polished. Combat is a little clunky but still better then the cookie cutter style. Animations are still quite rough sadly. Fortunately you dont play MMO games for graphics alone.

Crafting:
8/10 - ...which I didn't touch on, is enjoyable. Crafting can take a long time to complete. Fortunately theres a queue for items you want to craft - which will even continue when logged out!

Combat:
9/10 - Sure its a bit clunky, but it works. It works very well for the game. It works far better then you think it would during your first few hours of playing. After that you will start to see why its the way it is. Its not from piss-poor coding or whatever reason a troll will spit out. Also, there are headshots. Tab to switch modes is quite easy to adjust to, and fast.

Overall:
8/10 - I'd have to say that out of all the MMO games I've tried, fallen earth is among the most fun. Perhaps not the most polished. I do know I will be sticking around for a long time.


Note: The community for this game is simply amazing. They help out at every turn and the devs seem very open about listening to the players.

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Thats all for now. Maybe I'll finish up this review sometime.