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MMOre GAMESMore Games, More MMO’s, More Information
From pirates to cyborgs:We take a first look atUbisoft’s 80’s themed spinoff.
PLUS: PokéMMO - Will Nintendo let it live?
A run down of our most anticipated MMO games.
Farcry 3:Blood Dragon
WHEN lead Writer of the Farcry series Jeffrey
Yohalem announced he was, “working on
something that will be surprising,” back in
march, few would have guessed what was
coming. When a teaser video for Farcry 3:
Blood Dragon was released on April first,
most assumed it was a prank.Now, even after release, it is still hard to believe that
this newest instalment in the series is actually
exists.
“GET THE GIRL, KILL THE BADDIES AND
SAVE THE WORLD.”
The reason this comes as such a surprise is that it
takes the series out of its usual survivalist comfort
zone, and into a post-apocalyptic, dystopian future.
Blood dragon trades Pirates and wild animals for
cybernetically enhanced soldiers, and lets players
wreak havoc as a bionic action hero. Fans of the
series should forget about the survival aspects
found in the prequels, Blood Dragon is an all out
action game. Throw in a couple of mutants and a
handful of neon dragons and you’ve got almost
everything you could possibly want . . . right?
“THIS IS AN ALL OUT ACTION GAME.”
Put simply, the game is just good fun. It is not a big
budget game in the slightest, it is a dressed up
version of Farcry 3, which is probably why it’s so
appealing. Gamers who have played its predecessors
will already know the ins and outs, and they will be
able to jump right into the open world. Those who
may have never touched a Farcry game before will
also be able to slide into the role, as it stands
completely alone from its namesakes.
The game doesn’t take itself too seriously either, how
could it when it looks like the love child of Tron and
Duke Nukem? And, in true 80’s sci-fi style, it has a
hero, or anti-hero depending on how you play through
the game, who is an absolute badass. There are no
other words for it. From flipping the bird at every other
enemy you kill, to the simple ability to cause absolute
chaos with ease, the character fits perfectly into the
science fiction, action hero role.
“IT’S ABOUT BLOWING STUFF UP AND GOING
IN ALL GUNS BLAZING.”
Lovers of Farcry 3’s story; its darker undertones and
life altering choices may be disappointed by the lack
of such aspects in Blood Dragon, the fun lies in the
action rather than the story.
Everything about this game is a throwback to the
science fiction movies of the 80’s. The studio
described it as a, “get the girl, kill the baddies and
save the world,” kind of game.
This shows in every part of the game, the main
character: Sergeant Rex ‘Power’ Colt (right) is an
homage to The Terminator, and most of the
weapons in game are reminiscent of the world of
Tron or Blade Runner.
There is an argument that Blood Dragon will do
well, purely off the back of Farcry 3’s success. Even
Yohalem admits that the project was, “Definitely a
‘strike while the iron’s hot’ thing.” Despite this,
Blood Dragon has its own concepts; its own ideas
and is an original game. It is definitely not to be
mistaken for simple DLC, you won’t need a copy of
Farcry 3 to play it.
Unlike Farcry 3, it is not a survival game, focussing
instead on action and adventure, rather than
character development. It’s about blowing stuff up
and going in guns blazing, rather than tactical
espionage.
“THE WORK BEHIND THIS GAME IS
IMMENSE.”
While it may be a modification of the previous game,
the work behind Blood Dragon is immense.
Ubisoft have done everything to make this game feel
like a true 80’s sci-fi experience, from the aesthetics,
to the soundtrack, which features the musical
styling’s of Power Glove, and gives that tone which is
a must have for complete immersion into the world
Ubisoft is trying to create.
The studio also released a live action video, which
sets up the back-story for the world in which the
game is set, and the teaser trailer was animated like
a 1980’s VHS cartoon (Below). While the game may
not be completely story orientated, it is still there for
anyone who wants to be completely immersed, for
everyone else though, there’s always the fun of
blowing stuff up to the retro-electro soundtrack.
Despite a lacking budget, Ubisoft have poured so
much into this game. They obviously had some fun
making this game, and it shows.
Following suit of such stand-alone spin-offs as Red
Dead Redemption: Undead Nightmare, Farcry 3:
Blood Dragon provides fans with a fresh way to play
one of 2013’s must have games.
In a world where a nostalgia hungry gaming comunity
is driving the need for more and more retro games,
this is a clever way to mix the old and the new.
Farcry 3: Blood Dragon might not bring a tear to the
glowing, cybernetic eye, but that doesn’t mean it isnt
worth the money. For anyone who longs for the return
of the Sci-fi pop culture of the 1980’s, Farcry 3: blood
Dragon is a must have.
ABOVE: Our Hero Arnold Sch- err . . . Seargeant Rex
Power’ Colt. (Game Cover)
LEFT: A screenshot of some of the many
Cyborg enemies.
BELOW: Our Hero making his debut in the game’s
animated trailer.
FREE TO PLAY
FAVORITESA RUNDOWN OF OUR FAVORITE F2P MMO’s
Our first game on this list is one,
which may not be for everyone. It is
not an easy game to play, and can
be quite slow, but for any fans of
the Digimon TV series, this is worth
a play.Digimon Masters online is not like other
MMO’s, arguably appealing more to fans
of the series rather than to hardcore
players. However, for anyone who did like
the show, this game offers players the
opportunity to step into the digital world,
with their own digital monster
companions, or Digimon.
This game is a few years old at this point,
and yet, it still feels like it is in its Beta
testing phase. It is fairly hard to navigate,
with a point and click system, rather than
the conventional WASD controls which are
standard in most MMO’s, and anyone not
playing on a gaming PC might be a little
slower to start.
As for the rest of the game, the story is
lacking. Players have four avatars to
choose from, and four starter Digimon
companions. Zero customization options
are a let down from the off, the only
aspect of this is that clothes and other
accessories are available later in the
game. The whole aim of DMO is to acquire
more Digimon, while leveling up both
yourself and your companions. This dual
leveling system is a neat feature, but
seems irrelevant to most aspects of the
game.
As for finding more companions, this is
the worst part of the entire game. The
process is long and tedious. It requires
players to fight wild Digimon in the hopes
that they drop a ridiculously rare,
“Mercenary Egg,” which is one of three
types of eggs available in game.
As for the other two types of eggs, one is
essentially useless, giving the player some
common items, the other is a DATA egg, of
which you will need many to hatch your
mercenary egg. Having trouble keeping
up? You can see why this game is so
difficult to play.
After spending hours killing countless
monsters in the hopes that one will drop
a mercenary egg, finally obtaining one can
feel like a massive relief.
However, the battle is only half won. After
acquiring this egg, trying to hatch it can
be a nightmare with the very high chance
that you will break it during the process
and lose everything. It is enough to make
even the most casual gamers rage quit
and storm off in a huff.
However, for all its flaws, Digimon Masters
deserves a place on this list. Why? It
deserves a place because it’s original. Not
only that, the amount of time the game
requires gives an overwhelming amount
of satisfaction when you do succeed.
Also, when you get past the initial
difficulty, and look at the aesthetics, the
game is quite pretty. The artwork is exactly
what you would expect from the creators
of Digimon, even on the lowest graphics
settings. The game deserves a place on
the list because at its heart is everything
a Digimon fan could want, despite its
difficulty, the rewards will outweigh the
miserable hours spent wading through
meaningless monster battles.
For anyone who can’t afford the World of Warcraft subscription fees, this is our run down of the best Free to Play
MMO’s. All you need to play these games is a computer, an internet connection and a few spare hours to waste.
No. 5: DIGIMON MASTERS ONLINE
From Digimon to Pokémon in one fell
swoop; any die hard fans of the
Digimon series may wish to avoid this
next entry.Pokémon is one of the most highly selling
games, by one of the biggest games companies
in the world. Speak to anyone who grew up in
the nineties and almost all of them will know
what Pokémon is. In fact, more than a decade
on and the Pokémon franchise is still growing,
with new series on TV and new titles every year.
Despite its scale though, Nintendo has never
made the leap from consoles to online, and to
be honest, why would they when their formula
has stood the test of time. All that has really
changed over the years are tighter graphics and
a handful of new monsters.
Never fear though, because the good Pokéfans
over at PokéMMO have taken it upon
themselves to create such a game.
For more information, see our review.
No. 4: PokéMMO
Our third instalment is the
medieval martial arts MMO Age of
Wushu, which is without doubt, the
most unique game on this list, if
not on the internet.One of the key characteristics of an MMO
is advancement, becoming more powerful
than other players, and unlocking more.
Most role playing games do this with a
levelling system. In Age of Wushu
however, there is no such thing. Instead,
the game focusses on learning new skills
from scrolls and schools, which means
that there is no need to kill countless
monsters or spend hours on repetitive
quests in order to advance.
The game is as close to a kung-fu movie
as you could possibly get. The combat
relies on facing the target, and using the
skills you've learned, with a combo system
closer to a fighting game than an MMO.
It's more fluid than many games, and the
multitude of different skills available
means that you can really find your own
style.
But combat isn't the only thing separating
Age of Wushu from other games in the
market. Instead of following the classic,
“Class,” systems of mos MMO's, this
game doesn't let you choose from the off,
instead, it teaches you the basics and lets
you choose a school after the tutorial.
So there are a couple of things which
make Age of Wushu stand out, but these
are not even the most interesting things
about it.
Developers Snail Games USA have
completely changed the face of
MMORPG's with Age of Wushu. This game
has an economy, it evolves with player
input, not only that, but players can do just
about anything.
When a player logs out, their characters
remain in the world, and can be
kidnapped by others, players who kill
other people will have bounties placed on
their heads, and anyone with in-game
police skill can track them down and
make an arrest.
There is just so much to this game that
puts it ahead of the competition. So why
is it only number three?
There are a couple of reasons.
Firstly, the game doesn't feel finished.
There is so much text on screen,
constantly, that it can feel a little crowded,
and, despite the superb graphics, the
controls can be quite buggy.
With everything that has been put into
this game, after a few hours it feels like
you've barely scratched the surface. With
so many choices to make, how can you
know which is the right one?
Age of Wushu is a new release, and is the
youngest game in our list, so its success
cannot possibly be judged yet, but if
everything that it boasts is true, there is
no reason that this game shouldn't
become one of the higher scoring games.
For now though, there is just too much
which needs to be tightened up before it
reaches the top of the list.
No. 3: AGE OF WUSHU
In 2010 when Sony Online
Entertainment announced that
they were creating a free superhero
based MMO, with the characters
from the DC comic book universe,
the hype was huge. Teaser videos
and interviews with the
development team, not to mention
the fully animated trailer, showed
the immense work behind creating
what looked like it could shape up
to be one of the biggest MMO’s of
the last few years. Probably one of
the most exciting features was that
this game was going to be on
Playstation 3 as well as PC. It
looked like DC Universe Online
might give WOW a run for its
money.However, what seems too good to be true,
usually is, and on the run-up to launch,
which was pushed back a number of
times, a series of let-downs came to light.
Firstly, it was announced that the game
would not be cross platform, Playstation 3
and PC players would not be able to play
together. Then the kicker, there was in
fact, going to be a subscription fee.
However, one year later, Sony announced
that DCUO was going to adapt to a, “Free
to Play,” (F2P) model.
This model is one that many MMO’s have
adapted in order to grow their customer
reach. The system offers three modes of
play: free, where anyone can play, with
some features limited; preferred player
status, where a one off payment will give
a little bit more access; and of course, a
subscription where all aspects of the
game are unlocked.
As for the game itself, the F2P model
offers the standard game, and is definitely
worth playing for anyone who has ever
dreamt of being a superhero.
Everything you could ever want is
included, from customization, to choice of
superpowers, even whether to be good or
evil, the game offers players the chance to
fight alongside their favorite heroes or
villains from the DC comics franchise.
Now, the concept of a superhero MMO
may be uncommon, but it is by no means
unique, with predecessors like,
“Champions Online.” What makes DCUO
so special, aside from the recognizable
faces of Superman, Batman and the rest
of the DC universe, is the combat system.
While most MMO’s adopt the, “point and
click,” targeting system where hotkeys
hold attacks, DCUO uses a, “button
mashing,” combat system similar to
games like Mortal Combat, or most other
combat related games found on games
consoles, alongside the standare MMO
interface, utilising both to make combat
more responsive. This is part of why it is
such a success, it is much more fluid than
the average MMO. Since the PS3’s
graphics capability is already pretty good,
anyone playing on the console will have
the same graphics capabilities, and so
nobody has to play with blurry characters,
and everything looks tight.
With all the social aspects of gaming that
the Playstation network brings, DCUO is
great to play with all your friends, all it
takes is one download.
Being a superhero is something that
almost everyone has wanted at some
point in their lives, so while you wait for
that radioactive spider bite, or the
chemical spillage that grants you your own
super human abilities, DC Universe online
is the next best thing.
No. 2: DC UNIVERSE ONLINE
This was a tough choice. Not
because of any aspects of the
game, but rather it was a toss up
between being a Jedi Knight, or a
Superhero.In the end though, Star Wars: The Old
Republic came out on top for a few
reasons.
While it may not have the responsive
combat of DCUO, the collectable monsters
that Digimon Masters Online or PokéMMO
have, or the martial artistry of Age of
Wushu, SWTOR has so much more to it.
One of the things separating this game
from the other MMO’s on this list is the
voice acting. While DCUO may boast an all-
star cast, including Mark Hamill and Kevin
Conroy as the voices of The Joker and
Batman, SWTOR has voice acting across
the board. Every single quest, every side
quest, and even the player’s characters
have pre-recorded dialogue.
Not only that, but SWTOR, like DCUO,
allows for total immersion into one of the
greatest franchises in the world. That
prospect alone should be enough to get
Star Wars fans to play, and that’s without
even mentioning the ability to visit all your
favorite scenes from the movies, as well
as a plethora of material from the official
fiction.
Star Wars: The Old Republic is set in a
galaxy far, far away, and the sheer volume
of content makes it feel like there truly is
a whole galaxy to explore.
Each class in SWTOR has a different story,
and a different end-game, which means
that there are so many ways to play.
Players can slip into the role of Jedi Knight
like Obi-Wan Kenobi; smugglers like Han
Solo; bounty hunter like Boba Fett or Sith
like Darth Vader.
SWTOR has everything players expect from
a good MMO, with a couple things to make
it a little easier: sending companions to
gather crafting materials means that
minor skills can be advanced while the
player concentrates on the fundamentals
of the game.
Of course, being able to have any colour of
lightsaber you want is just the cherry on
top.
Star Wars: The Old Republic is worthy of
the Franchise name, and allows players to
become a part of one of the biggest
franchises in the world.
One of its unique features is the, “Legacy
System,” which allows players to link each
of their characters in a family tree, with
rivalries or blood relations, giving some of
their lower level characters perks they
have already gained. This feature really
adds to the role-playing aspect of the
game that some people look for, granting
that all immersive experience.
Similarly to DCUO, this game offers three
ways to play: F2P, one off payment and a
subscription fee. Playing for free restricts
the amount of experience gained, and so
advancing can take a lot longer, which is
tedious, but definitely not any cause for
alarm, the F2P status is definitely still
playable.
Star Wars: The Old Republic has so much
to offer, whether you love Star Wars or just
MMO’s, SWTOR appeals to both markets.
No. 1: STAR WARS: THE OLD REPUBLIC
Pokémon is probably one of the
biggest hand-held games in the
world, and there is no reason it
shouldn't be. It has stood the test of
time. While some parts of it may
change or evolve, the formula has
remained the same. There is a
reason it is a household name,
especially for those of us who grew
up in the nineties. Over the years Nintendo have made small
changes to the franchise, adding more
monsters and updating maps, keeping
only the very basic mechanics of game-
play the same, and it has become so
successful that it has become a yearly
title.
Yet, with all its success, Pokémon has
never made the jump to the Internet.
Until now!
The people over at PokéMMO have finally
created what the nostalgic 90's kid in all
of us is crying out for: the chance to play
Pokémon online.
Ok, it may not be an official Nintendo
game, but does that make it any less
relevant as an MMO?
At its heart is everything Nintendo poured
into the original game, in fact, it
even uses a, “ROM,” from
“Pokémon: Fire Red version.”
Which leads to its first problem.
Before game-play even starts,
there are so many different parts,
which need to be downloaded.
Since the ROM's needed to play
the game can be downloaded
illegally, PokéMMO refuse to
supply them.
Unfortunately, there is a danger in
downloading ROM's, as they can
contain viruses, which could be a
problem for some gamers.
The ROM itself is just one of many
things that will need to be
downloaded which could also
contain threats. However, in the
name of journalism, the risk was
one which had to be taken!
Even starting up the game, the
nostalgia begins to flow, after all,
this is Pokémon! Not only that, it's
online.
It doesn't even matter that it runs
“Even starting up the game, the nostalgia begins to flow.”
PokeMMO
off of one of the older games, Fire Red
version, which, when it was first released,
was a remake of the original Pokémon
game, and since Pokémon uses 2-D 64-
Bit graphics, like Nintendo's other famous
face, Mario, it still looks good. In fact, for
those of us who grew up playing all the
Pokémon games, the fact that it is the
original series is cause for excitement.
The game throws in a couple of things
which have always been missing from
Pokémon, first off is character
customization, which seems essential to
make yourself part of the game, however,
it has never before been included in the
Pokémon series.
One of our favorite additions is the hot-
keys bar, being able to easily use repels
without having to go into the backpack is
such a relief. In fact, the whole menu
interface of the hand held system has
been changed. The wider screen allows
for a menu bar, and a window where you
can view your Pokémon party at all times,
for quick changes in the line up, it makes
the game a lot smoother.
“Character customization, which seems essential to
make yourself part of the game, has never before been
included in the Pokémon series.”
The thing which turns PokéMMO into a
true MMO, is the Teams system, which
works like a Guild in most other MMO's. It
will be interesting to see how this aspect
of the game will be developed over time.
The game is still fairly new, and who
knows what changes may still be to come.
If you chose to download the ROM's, it is
recommended to also download the
optional, “Heart Gold version,” ROM,
which lets one of your Pokémon follow you
around.
Though it may feel exciting at the start,
and despite being able to play online with
friends, eventually the novelty wears off,
and it is just Fire Red version all over
again. Which was in no way a bad game,
it's just that playing it through again can
feel repetitive, despite the nostalgia.
For all the negatives that this game has,
which are admittedly, rather unrelated to
game-play, the sheer fact that it's
Pokémon is enough to intrigue most fans.
It may not be a game for the hardcore
MMO'ers but for anyone who played
Pokémon when they were young, it is
worth a try.
“Download the optional, “Heart Gold version,” ROM,
which lets one of your Pokémon follow you around.”