So, I don't know if anyone's seen this, It's a Chinese MMO that's coming over to the US. I heard about it through the new 1UP Yours reincarnate ListenUP. www.whattheyplay.com , a gaming site, it's specifically geared to parent gamers/ parents of gamers; is providing 1000 free beta keys to anyone who responds to their blog post at http://www.whattheyplay.com/blog/2009/02/12/ether-saga-online-1000-beta-key-giveaway/ . All you have to do is sign up on the site and make a post to the blog, when 1000 posts is reached, they'll toss it to you based on the email you signed up with.
So on to the actual game, if you click the link and watch the video it's explained. I don't know that it really does anything to innovate as far as MMOs go, I've played more than my fair share, and it doesn't necessarily look like it will. But -- The visual aesthetic is very all-ages, bright colorful Pokemon-esque almost. The inclusion of the raiseable monster companion that stays by you at all times seems interesting to me, it's definitely got this sort of ancient china dragon ball (not z) meets pokemon feel to it, which I am in love with as of right now.
My main beef over this game will be whether or not there is a lot of character customization, from what it looks like there should be, so I'm excited about that, you can even do a totally closed eye all the time character a la Brock! Oh my god, totally geeking out here. The overly cute style might turn some people off, but I love it, and there's a good variety of really cool to really cute from what I was seeing.
Also, the best part, the MMO is completely free, there is an item shop though of course, where you can pay with real money. The big question will be whether or not someone not paying can work hard and get basically the same stuff. From what I understand, you can make money for the item shop in game as well, its just significantly harder than dropping your credit card number in and taking what you want. If it turns out I can play through the game, and only pay for a few nifty aesthetic things here and there, and that there is a decent amount of customization, well I think this game is going to be worth a little time investment, especially when I won't be paying for it when I'm not playing, *grumble*
Reason's why it's awesome... If check out any videos on youtube you may see this. But there are two way emotes. Like hugs, handshakes, kissing, even picking other people up and carrying them on flying mounts! This may not seem like a big deal but the fact that this exists for everyone is pretty awesome. It's all very Mario& Peach kiss on the nose sort of stuff, so it's innocent enough, but the fact that two way emotes are built in, and that you can carry people on mounts is downright nifty, particularly to those who play with their significant others, or who like to role play.
Blargity, my premium is down till Allah confirms my paypal payment gurr, damn ya'll not taking Amex
Edited, Feb 27th 2009 6:05pm by RamseySylph
Edited, Feb 28th 2009 11:26pm by RamseySylph
- Forums
- Cross Site
- General Video Game Discussion
- Ether Saga Online :: Free MMO Beta
Ether Saga Online :: Free MMO BetaFollow
Just a last note, if anyone is interested in following this game, you can check out http://ethersaga.blogspot.com/ where I'll blog my experiences in the game.
Edited, Feb 27th 2009 6:05pm by RamseySylph
Edited, Feb 27th 2009 6:05pm by RamseySylph
i sure as hell hope its a free beta, making someone pay to beta a game would be pretty weird.
Sony used to only give beta away to people who paid for there overpriced legends service at one point in time. Was like $40 for a server with better customer support and limited population. Those are the people who ended up testing EQ1 expansions in beta for awhile.
Hi
Sort of a game overview that I wrote up for something else, but I thought I'd post it here, and thanks for pointing that miss type out, forgot to put "Free MMO" before Beta, that was a bit missleading.
The Game
- "Ether Bucks" the in game currency are used almost exclusively for convenience items and fashion items.
Ex. Alternate Hair Styles, Decorative Dress, Items to prevent crafting failures, items to stop exp loss
- "Ether Bucks" can be sold and traded for in game Gold and Silver style currency. In fact there's a built in npc that handles auctions of ether bucks.
Ex. This means hardcore gamers can get anything on the online store without ever paying a red cent, it's very friendly to budget gamers
- "Controls" are similar to WoW's controls, the UI and controls will be instantly recognizable.
- "Game play" is actually more like Pokemon meets WoW, raising pets is a huge part of the game, you can go out and capture pets when they're weakened
- You can even breed pets to make stronger pets, and almost every type of monster can be caught
- Players can fuse with (and) transform into monsters, giving them abilities, even flight and their size can prevent or allow them through smaller spaces
- PvP is open, but the environment is casual and violent players are marked, players can't accidentally attack one another.
- Players can join clans and clans can form alliances and you can mark people as enemies to always display for attack
- The game has a public instancing system similar to Lineage's Catacombs
- Unlike catacombs, these have timed objectives
- There are PvP instances like battlegrounds from wow
- "Art Style" is very much Dragon Ball/Quest (not Dragon Ball Z) the very very Chinese/East Asia landscapes and styles are breathtaking and refreshing change from Western MMOs despite technically inferior graphics
- The game is very cute in that inocuous style that most hardcore gamers can stand
- "Emotes" the game's emote system is strong, and male characters can carry female characters around, including on mounts and flying mounts
- This is really great if you're playing with your signifigant other, far superior to /follow of most mmos where she'll get stuck on trees
- I can even carry my girlfriend around on my flying nimbus, even though she's way below the required level, it's a cute game overall
- "Educational" the game randomly spits out information from the real world when talking to NPCs, its not required nor is it part of the story, it breaks the fourth wall like an aside in a play, and it's just a sort of "Did you know" dialog box that appears with some npcs
Ex. The game informed me who Charles Richardens was, talked about Mesoamerican Pyramids, told me about Mark Twain and quizzed me on Remus and Romulus founders of Rome among many other things!
Ex. Possible explanations for this: In China most content is censored, most do not learn about foreign cultures, this may have been slipped in to try and eduate people.
Ex. This may have been a shoddy attempt at localization replacing Chinese Legends with western info, that being said, the inclusion of certain near eastern things made me question this explanation
- "Localization" the localization isn't top grade, the spoken dialog, which is just the "Hi how are you" etc is all in Chinese, which personally I enjoy, some may not. The translation of the written dialog is often slightly awkward, but it's always very obvious what must be done, and the story is never diluded. In fact, the translation is often humorus, but it's clear it's unintentional, or brilliantly intentional.
- Despite the dialog often being awkward, the tutorial information is 100% top grade translated, nothing there is unclear or awkward, thank goodness.
For Couples
This game is the perfect way to introduce your significant other to MMOs. The innocuous style is suitable for pretty much anyone, it's not gritty or hyper violent. A guy can pick up his girl and carry her around, which is cute and useful. The game's quest system has a built in auto-routing system, if you're not sure where to go, open your log click the npc or item name and if your character's not stuck in a tree in some obscure location, he or she is on an auto run course to the destination which you can stop and start again at any time! The gameplay isn't too hardcore or fast paced, it's not too PvP centric. The Online store even includes some exceptionaly cute gift ideas like for 50 cents an item that lets you teleport to your signifgant other's side anytime, anywhere.
The auto-routing system is also great if you're multi tasking, whether it be twittering, doing work or just eating while you play. The built in combo system that allows you to string together spells and abilities and even loop them also works quite well.
THE OVERVIEW
For a free transaction based MMO Ether Saga is absolutely top class. A solid, fleshed out MMO with a addictive pokemon-esque gameplay not seen enough in online games, and an inocuous for all ages art style; Ether Saga already puts itself above some of the pay to play competition. The fact that the game is free online makes it a must try for anyone who loves or is interested in MMOs. The fact that you don't have to pay for any microtransactions if you don't want to is just further icing on the cake for hardcore gamers. The eastern style of the game's characters and music are so refreshing in comparison to the stale over-used Lord of the Ring spin offs we're used to seeing in MMOs that the combination of refreshing style and substance, and the free no strings attatched commitment of the game make this perfect for a Jaded MMO gamer or someone looking to get their feet wet in the genre.
**Note: Nothing can be said about end game currently, as I am not there nor informed about it.
Edited, Mar 3rd 2009 11:43pm by RamseySylph
The Game
- "Ether Bucks" the in game currency are used almost exclusively for convenience items and fashion items.
Ex. Alternate Hair Styles, Decorative Dress, Items to prevent crafting failures, items to stop exp loss
- "Ether Bucks" can be sold and traded for in game Gold and Silver style currency. In fact there's a built in npc that handles auctions of ether bucks.
Ex. This means hardcore gamers can get anything on the online store without ever paying a red cent, it's very friendly to budget gamers
- "Controls" are similar to WoW's controls, the UI and controls will be instantly recognizable.
- "Game play" is actually more like Pokemon meets WoW, raising pets is a huge part of the game, you can go out and capture pets when they're weakened
- You can even breed pets to make stronger pets, and almost every type of monster can be caught
- Players can fuse with (and) transform into monsters, giving them abilities, even flight and their size can prevent or allow them through smaller spaces
- PvP is open, but the environment is casual and violent players are marked, players can't accidentally attack one another.
- Players can join clans and clans can form alliances and you can mark people as enemies to always display for attack
- The game has a public instancing system similar to Lineage's Catacombs
- Unlike catacombs, these have timed objectives
- There are PvP instances like battlegrounds from wow
- "Art Style" is very much Dragon Ball/Quest (not Dragon Ball Z) the very very Chinese/East Asia landscapes and styles are breathtaking and refreshing change from Western MMOs despite technically inferior graphics
- The game is very cute in that inocuous style that most hardcore gamers can stand
- "Emotes" the game's emote system is strong, and male characters can carry female characters around, including on mounts and flying mounts
- This is really great if you're playing with your signifigant other, far superior to /follow of most mmos where she'll get stuck on trees
- I can even carry my girlfriend around on my flying nimbus, even though she's way below the required level, it's a cute game overall
- "Educational" the game randomly spits out information from the real world when talking to NPCs, its not required nor is it part of the story, it breaks the fourth wall like an aside in a play, and it's just a sort of "Did you know" dialog box that appears with some npcs
Ex. The game informed me who Charles Richardens was, talked about Mesoamerican Pyramids, told me about Mark Twain and quizzed me on Remus and Romulus founders of Rome among many other things!
Ex. Possible explanations for this: In China most content is censored, most do not learn about foreign cultures, this may have been slipped in to try and eduate people.
Ex. This may have been a shoddy attempt at localization replacing Chinese Legends with western info, that being said, the inclusion of certain near eastern things made me question this explanation
- "Localization" the localization isn't top grade, the spoken dialog, which is just the "Hi how are you" etc is all in Chinese, which personally I enjoy, some may not. The translation of the written dialog is often slightly awkward, but it's always very obvious what must be done, and the story is never diluded. In fact, the translation is often humorus, but it's clear it's unintentional, or brilliantly intentional.
- Despite the dialog often being awkward, the tutorial information is 100% top grade translated, nothing there is unclear or awkward, thank goodness.
For Couples
This game is the perfect way to introduce your significant other to MMOs. The innocuous style is suitable for pretty much anyone, it's not gritty or hyper violent. A guy can pick up his girl and carry her around, which is cute and useful. The game's quest system has a built in auto-routing system, if you're not sure where to go, open your log click the npc or item name and if your character's not stuck in a tree in some obscure location, he or she is on an auto run course to the destination which you can stop and start again at any time! The gameplay isn't too hardcore or fast paced, it's not too PvP centric. The Online store even includes some exceptionaly cute gift ideas like for 50 cents an item that lets you teleport to your signifgant other's side anytime, anywhere.
The auto-routing system is also great if you're multi tasking, whether it be twittering, doing work or just eating while you play. The built in combo system that allows you to string together spells and abilities and even loop them also works quite well.
THE OVERVIEW
For a free transaction based MMO Ether Saga is absolutely top class. A solid, fleshed out MMO with a addictive pokemon-esque gameplay not seen enough in online games, and an inocuous for all ages art style; Ether Saga already puts itself above some of the pay to play competition. The fact that the game is free online makes it a must try for anyone who loves or is interested in MMOs. The fact that you don't have to pay for any microtransactions if you don't want to is just further icing on the cake for hardcore gamers. The eastern style of the game's characters and music are so refreshing in comparison to the stale over-used Lord of the Ring spin offs we're used to seeing in MMOs that the combination of refreshing style and substance, and the free no strings attatched commitment of the game make this perfect for a Jaded MMO gamer or someone looking to get their feet wet in the genre.
**Note: Nothing can be said about end game currently, as I am not there nor informed about it.
Edited, Mar 3rd 2009 11:43pm by RamseySylph
So I just came across this game. I've seen some banners for it on a few other sites I visit but never gave it a try.
In my search for a new MMO (as my WoW time ran out, and I don't feel like buying time atm) and searcher out to try some of the "newer" free MMOs.
I had been following Runes of Magic, but until they get more servers that game is WAY to packed. I was lagging so bad it made me quit.
And so I decided to give Perfect World a try. It isn't new, as it has been around for awhile (I've know about it for a year or 2). The customization of your character is what drew me to the game, but the Race = Class is what made to turn away at the same time. Gave it a shot, but in the end it wasn't for me either.
Bored and not wanting to return to Maple Story, Tales of Pirates, or Yulgang (Scions of Fate) I went to a site that listed free MMOs.
Some looked pretty, some looked fun but nothing was pulling me in.
Then I came across Eether Saga's info tag. And it is something that should be known it people who wish to maybe give this game a try (it is what made me want to try it).
Ether Saga is largely based on "Journey to the West". The old Chinese story has been used as the base for other things. Like, the original Dragon Ball Manga/Anime is based the story. And a resent movie "The Forbidden Kingdom" that stared moth Jackie Chan and Jet Li tells a small part of the large story.
I so far have liked the game play, and the graphic style is great. Good color pallet, with Anime style/Dragon Ball big eyed goofy looking creatures.
However, the only downside seems to be leveling. The 1st 20 levels can be done by just talking to NPCs for EXP. I'm sure when the Grind kicks in, I'll have another view of this game. But I'm having fun with it.
In my search for a new MMO (as my WoW time ran out, and I don't feel like buying time atm) and searcher out to try some of the "newer" free MMOs.
I had been following Runes of Magic, but until they get more servers that game is WAY to packed. I was lagging so bad it made me quit.
And so I decided to give Perfect World a try. It isn't new, as it has been around for awhile (I've know about it for a year or 2). The customization of your character is what drew me to the game, but the Race = Class is what made to turn away at the same time. Gave it a shot, but in the end it wasn't for me either.
Bored and not wanting to return to Maple Story, Tales of Pirates, or Yulgang (Scions of Fate) I went to a site that listed free MMOs.
Some looked pretty, some looked fun but nothing was pulling me in.
Then I came across Eether Saga's info tag. And it is something that should be known it people who wish to maybe give this game a try (it is what made me want to try it).
Ether Saga is largely based on "Journey to the West". The old Chinese story has been used as the base for other things. Like, the original Dragon Ball Manga/Anime is based the story. And a resent movie "The Forbidden Kingdom" that stared moth Jackie Chan and Jet Li tells a small part of the large story.
I so far have liked the game play, and the graphic style is great. Good color pallet, with Anime style/Dragon Ball big eyed goofy looking creatures.
However, the only downside seems to be leveling. The 1st 20 levels can be done by just talking to NPCs for EXP. I'm sure when the Grind kicks in, I'll have another view of this game. But I'm having fun with it.
<random relatively fantasy-related term> epic/journey/saga/tale Online sounds like my kind of game?
His Excellency Aethien wrote:
Almalieque wrote:
If no one debated with me, then I wouldn't post here anymore.
gbaji wrote:
I'm not getting my news from anywhere Joph.
Recent Visitors: 163
All times are in CST
Anonymous Guests (163)
- Forums
- Cross Site
- General Video Game Discussion
- Ether Saga Online :: Free MMO Beta
© 2024 Fanbyte LLC