Speaking of Dekaron, here’s a handy tip for newbies to the online game that is currently in open beta phase in Southeast Asia, thanks to its licensed operator, mobiusgames.
Well, Dekaron is just like any MMORPG in the sense that you earn experience either by killing mobs or finishing quests. Dekaron, however, has something akin to a bonus monster. It’s called the Akris (which look like a large deer or moose), and the experience points it gives is higher than the normal mobs and the items it drops include potions and magical weapons and armor.
What’s even better is that they’re not that hard to kill, unless you’re hunting Akris that have names in red, which means their level is higher than your lowly character.
Talk about lucky. Two Akris equals mucho dinero and other loots.
Screenshot taken by Joel from the online game Dekaron, developed by GameHi and operated in Southeast Asia, including the Philippines, by dme and mobiusgames.
Here’s something that never changes no matter what MMORPG you play: Vendors and the way they clutter the streets and every nook and cranny of towns and cities.
Screenshot taken by Joel from the online game Dekaron, developed by GameHi and operated in Southeast Asia by dme and mobiusgames.
Ever heard of MayPan? I have not, at least not until I searched for it on the net. Well, it turns out MayPan is a new MMORPG set to launch in China within the year.
Here’s the lowdown, courtesy of our friends at online games portal 17173:
Ferry Game announced the license for the operation of MayPan in China on September 5. Gao Wei, product manager of MayPan, revealed the details of the game.
At the beginning of the game, players will received (sic) a pet egg, which will be incubated into the initial pet. At that time, all the pets look the same. But when they reach Level 10, they will evolve into different appearance. At Level 20, their appearance will go through changes, into different sizes and looks.
Except for the pet-evolution system, most of the monsters in the game can be captured and tamed into pets. When fighting wars, the pets will join their masters.
The official site is estimated to launch in mid-September, and accept the registeration (sic) since then. The closed test will star (sic) in mid-November.
See what I mean by Pokemon with a twist. To give you a better idea, take a gander at this promotional video:
Actually, it’s been on open beta since September 2. My, whatever happened to closed beta? Well, as is normal in the hectic and fast-paced world of MMORPG management and operations, closed beta just breezed by us bystanders.
Here’s the official announcement:
Perfect World Co. Ltd., a leading online game developer and operator in China, has launched open beta testing for Perfect World II in North America on September 2, 2008, under the name Perfect World International through its wholly owned U.S. subsidiary, Perfect World Entertainment Inc.
The game has received positive feedback since the closed beta testing. The open beta testing is expected to allow more North American online game players to enjoy the game’s expansive feature set and unique artistic elegance.
“I am very pleased by the successful closed beta testing in North America, and we are excited to introduce Perfect World International to more online game players,” said Alan Chen, senior vice president of Perfect World Co. Ltd. and chief executive officer of Perfect World Entertainment Inc. “I believe that the efforts we have devoted to the localization work and our execution ability will enhance our position in North America.”
Now, if I can only figure out a way to get into the game (I still have to confirm whether Perfect World International is limited to North American subscribers). Why force it? Well, let’s take another look at one of Mr. Chen’s statements: “ … the efforts we have devoted to the localization work …”
Did you get that? It simply means the game is tailored to each market where Perfect World is running. I already know how Perfect World is being handled and received in the Philippines and Malaysia (I have characters on servers in both countries, and gameplay, although essentially the same, is different, experience-wise). Now I want to know what the game looks like in North America through the eyes of players in the United States and Canada.
Since its commercial launch last year, Perfect World and its operator in the Philippines, Level Up! Games, have kept up the tempo by holding events, both sponsored and unsponsored, to the delight of the virtual world’s denizens. I’ve never joined any of these events … that is, until the event dubbed The Lost Foreigner, sponsored by Nescafe 3in1 (yes, the coffee brand).
I didn’t really bite at first. I found The Lost Foreigner event, much like any other event in Perfect World Philippines, a chore. But at the prodding of my wife, I decided to give it a try.
The event requires players to craft three types of special potions at any Pharmacist NPC using four types of herbs, namely High Quality Coffee Bean, Essence of Intense Powder, Sweet Powder, and Leaves of Origin. These herbs need to be harvested from plants found in different parts of the virtual world of Pangu, and you need a lot of them to craft even one potion. Needless to say, it takes time, and a considerable amount of it, to make these potions named after the popular brand’s, uhmm, flavors: Nescafe 3in1 Original, Nescafe 3in1 Sweet n Creamy, and Nescafe 3in1 Intense.
Okay, let’s cut to the chase.
The Lost Foreigner isn’t held every day. There’s a set schedule for when the NPC comes out to purchase those tasty potions players concoct. So when I got wind of when the Lost Foreigner would appear, I grabbed the hundreds of herbs I so tediously harvested over the past few weeks, crafted hundreds of potions, and waited patiently for the day my coffee would turn into yuan, the in-game currency.
When D-Day finally arrived, however, I found the area where the Lost Foreigner was scheduled to appear already teeming with dozens of players. I thought, “Hey, there’s really nothing wrong with that. I know everybody will get their fair share.”
I thought wrong.
Even before the Lost Foreigner opened shop, a lot of players took it upon themselves to disrupt the event. Some chose to open shops identical to that of the Lost Foreigner, purchasing the supposedly 30,000-yuan potions for as low as 200 yuan each. Other, well-meaning players fell victim to these unscrupulous vendors. Other players, meanwhile, made nuisances of themselves either by crowding the Lost Foreigner on their mounts and flights, which take up most of the screen, giving other, again, well-meaning players a hard time spotting the Lost Foreigner.
Freakin’ immature, if you ask me. Although I’m not really surprised, considering that majority of Perfect World Philippines’ players are probably below 16. Hmmm, come to think of it, even those who are supposedly mature commit weird and immature acts.
Well, truth to tell, these imbeciles were not really what set me off. It’s the indifference of the game moderator handling the event. I mean, come on, it’s an event sponsored by Nescafe! Any irregularities that occur during the event reflects badly not only on Level Up! Games, but also the advertiser that probably paid handsomely just to market their products to immature players who don’t even drink coffee.
I do drink coffee, though, and I take these things seriously. Here’s a question for the head honchos of Level Up! Games, including friends Mon Macutay and Carlo Ople: Whatever happened to the event rules? Here’s a copy for readers of this space:
Event Rules:
• There are no limits on the amount of “qualified” items you can trade. • Players that (sic) disrupt the awarding in anyway will be dealt with harshly. A minimum of 1 week ban.
• All violators of the Mandate of Heaven will be penalized accordingly.
• Items traded will not be returned.
See those two rules I stressed using bold font? I want answers because I’ve got a truckload of those special potions in my inventory waiting to be traded … and I’m not the only one.
Whew! Long post. But we need screenshots. Here they are:
Yes, Requiem: Bloodymare has a new playable race and, of course, I’m one of the first to try it out.
Before I pass judgment, let me introduce you to the race:
Xenoas have an umatched high intelligence. In spire of their low physical power, they have good hand-skills and eyesight. To make up for their weakness, they have upgraded their long-distance attacks and knowledge-based magic.
Xenoas keep the order base on religion, faith and authority. To become the leader of the race, one should show the power of faith to the public. Xenoas believe that they are superior to other races, and are selective, disregarding other races. Currently, the Xenoa is a minority race. But their knowledge of science is very high.
Xenoa magic has been developed in a way so that the Xenoas can effectively protect themselves. But some of the magic is for attacking off-guard enemies. Due to its small body, a Xenoa is good at long-range attacks or traps. Its skills of healing or detecting are stronger than the ones of other races. Rather than direct magic attack, Xenoas are excellent in support magic. A Xenoa would even sacrifice itself to cast a huge magic attack.
Whew! Sounds great, right? That’s what I thought, too.
My Xenoa character, Alassra, named after the Witch-Queen Alassra Shentrantra Silverhand, a fictional character in the Dungeons and Dragons-based Forgotten Realms setting, started out as a strong Temperion, the basic job class (read: novice), leveling up faster than my Kruxena. When I got her to Level 11, however, and changed into my first job class, the Battlemagician, I quickly regretted it.
The Battlemagician’s skill set leaves much to be desired—at least to the kind of player that prefers to be in the thick of the battle, hacking and slashing at opponents or blasting them with spells. The Battlemagician, I learned too late, is more of a support character than a frontliner.
I don’t know … I’m still willing to continue playing Alassra. Maybe a change of weapon from wand to claws may do the trick, since Battlemages can use these and staves. Now I’m wondering if playing the other job, the Hunter, is better.
This piece of news is a bit late in coming but I’ll announce it just the same. Gravity Interactive, developer and publisher of a wide variety of online games, has just released the biggest update to its bloodiest title Requiem: Bloodymare, dubbed simply as 3.0.
Here’s what’s included in the patch:
New Playable Race
The Xenoa have done all they can to help against the imposing danger through the creation of advanced technologies. But now its time to take a more direct approach in saving Ethergia. Xenoa will come prepared with new classes and unique armor sets and weapons.
PvP Update
Battleground simulations are being reorganized to allow more players to participate faster. New Guild versus Guild weekly training exercises will be scheduled with the winning guilds being allocated more resources for their soldiers.
Item Update
Helms will be on display for fellow adventurers to admire. New set bonus will be updated and several item names will be revised. Many bugs will be amended.
Of course, I grabbed the opportunity to play the new race, and I’ve got a thing or two to say about it. But that’s fodder for another, future post.
It’s funny how character sprites can play tricks on your eyes, or on your computer monitor. Take this image (above) as an example. At a close view, the character’s appearance is pristine. Zoom out a bit and her hair goes poof (below).
The invisible woman
Some times the computer’s graphics card just fizzles out and fails to draw the sprites not only of player characters but also non-player characters. Here’s a prime example, a teleporter NPC from the game Perfect World.
Screenshots taken by Joel from the massively multiplayer online role-playing game Perfect World, developed by Perfect World Co. Ltd. of China and published in the Philippines by Level Up! Games.
First off, I’d like to apologize to the thousands upon thousands (yeah, right) followers of this space for the seemingly long lull this past week. Truth is, I’ve been slaving in front of the PC to bring you more Asian MMORPG goodness than you can handle.
Well, it has been both a very productive and unproductive week for me, depending on how you look at things. Productive because I’ve been playing non-stop, except for the repeated bathroom breaks due to cold weather and the body’s need to replenish energy by taking in food and getting short, energizing catnaps.
For the most part, I’ve been dipping my grubby fingers in five good MMORPGs, namely Perfect World, Ragnarok Online, Fly For Fun, Requiem: Bloodymare, and Dekaron. With the rig I’ve got, I can only play two games at a time—that is, if the hack-prevention program of the games don’t interfere with each other. (For example, I’ve found out that I can play Perfect World and Dekaron at the same time but not Fly For Fun and Requiem: Bloodymare. It’s also funny the way Ragnarok Online and Requiem: Bloodymare don’t get along well on your PC despite being developed by the same company, Gravity).
Ahh, wait! Did I say two games at the same time? No bots here, just a lot of micromanagement or time spent vending in one game and grinding in the other. There’s also the beauty known as craft leveling, which, to my knowledge, can only be done in Perfect World.
I was supposed to do a play for a few hours and post something about the experience thing. But the moments I spent playing these five games just gave me a lot of fun and stuff to waste time on that in the end I decided to gather as much data I could, collate them, and eventually come up with great articles for your reading pleasure. Let’s see how that turns out.
What better way to make diehard MMORPG players salivate for a game than showing them clips upon clips of videos. This is just what mobiusgames, operator of Dekaron in Southeast Asia, is doing.
So, in case you missed the jump onto the Dekaron bandwagon, I suggest you watch these videos to whet your appetite in time for open beta this September:
Craving for a taste of Asia? Buckle up then as MMOtaku takes you on a ride through different virtual worlds through news, walkthroughs, previews, highlights, gossip, rants and raves about our favorite Asian-made MMOs.
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Well, it has been both a very productive and unproductive week for me, depending on how you look at things. Productive because I’ve been playing non-stop, except for the repeated bathroom breaks due to cold weather and the body’s need to replenish energy by taking in food and getting short, energizing catnaps.
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