This means Warhammer!
For four long years the epic realm of the massively multiplayer RPG has been utterly dominated by one overlord: World Of Warcraft. Despite some promising upstarts - Age Of Conan and The Lord Of The Rings Online among them - its reign has continued virtually unchallenged. But things may be about to change.
Set in a dark, gritty world of perpetual conflict, Warhammer Online: Age Of Reckoning is the most complete and brilliantly realised MMORPG to stand up to WOW's hegemony. Newcomers choose between two warring factions - Order and Destruction - each featuring three radically different armies. Will you don the armour of a noble dwarf battling for the forces of good, or opt to become a repulsive rampaging orc, demolishing anything that stumbles in front of your blood-splattered broad sword? Frankly, you can be whatever you want in this tortured landscape - as long as you're prepared to fight. And fight. And then fight some more.
More war!
Because what Warhammer Online does is hack away at all the flab and baggage of the genre to create a much more honed, centred experience. You won't be expected to wander the world alone for days, attempting to figure out some poorly devised quest. There are plenty of solo quests available if that's what you like, but they're short, sharp and clearly designed.
You're always part of a huge force, battling against a similarly gargantuan enemy.
Instead, the emphasis is on PvP, or player vs player combat. Warhammer Online: Age Of Reckoning, much more than most other MMOs, is about getting in there and taking on other humans, earning Renown points and levelling up to become a more powerful, respected character. You can engage in self-contained battle scenarios, which provide players with set objectives, or take to the game's open battlefields and just slaughter the opposing army until your mouse arm aches.
Vitally, any kill you make adds to your army's power; once the balance shifts inexorably toward Order or Destruction, the dominant side can launch a massive attack on the opponent's capital city - a truly epic experience. Mythic refers to its combat style as Realm vs Realm, because you're always part of a huge force battling against a similarly gargantuan enemy.
Party time…
At the same time, the developers know that there are people who just want to drop in, enjoy a reasonably meaty raid and then disappear again, without getting involved with an army or even socialising with other players. This is where the excellent Public Quests come in. Players turn up individually, are packed into groups and given questing objectives, usually to kill ever greater numbers of non-player characters, until finally facing off against one mega-monster. There's little organisation required - a bunch of strangers just get together and go off hunting. When it’s over, everyone shares the XP. It's a clever new idea.
An atmospheric, well-drawn kingdom, ranging from nightmarish Chaos wastelands to bustling sea ports and vast forests.
As for the look of the world, with 25 years of Warhammer heritage to rifle through, Mythic has produced an atmospheric, well-drawn kingdom, ranging from nightmarish Chaos wastelands to bustling sea ports and vast forests. While the visuals aren't stunning, environments have a darker, more sombre feel than WOW's almost cartoonish style, which suits the themes of eternal war and struggle.
One thing's for sure, this is an intricately detailed fictional world. So detailed, in fact, that whatever a player sees or experiences is logged into his or her own Tome Of Knowledge - a huge diary/sticker book/encyclopedia which stores information on all the beasts, battles and background histories of the Age Of Reckoning world. It's great for anyone who loves to just explore and collect new stuff.
Building a universe
Warhammer Online: Age Of Reckoning is a gigantic, beautifully crafted marvel that grabs all the best stuff from WOW, twists it about, adds a new emphasis on large-scale PvP combat and creates an extremely polished MMORPG experience. It will, of course, take a while for the game to reach its potential - bugs have to be ironed out, and more gamers need to come onboard - but the foundations are strong, and everything has been thought through in immense detail. WOW is still the master of this domain but its rule may now be weakening.
GAME's Verdict
- The Realm vs Realm system leads to some amazing battles, providing a real sense of being involved in a greater story.
- Public Quests provide accessible adventures for those who just want to chop monsters into small pieces.
- The self-contained battle scenarios offer a varied selection of challenges.
- Needs to grow its user-base to really realise its epic potential.
- Solo quests are perhaps not as fully conceived as they are in World Of Warcraft.
- Visuals are functional rather than amazing.
Review by: Keith 'Troll Crusher' Stuart
Version Tested: PC