Atlantica Online | |
---|---|
![]() | |
Developer(s) | NDOORS Corporation |
Publisher(s) | Valofe |
Director(s) | Taegon Kim [1] |
Producer(s) | Taegon Kim [1] |
Designer(s) | |
Programmer(s) | |
Artist(s) | |
Writer(s) | Jikeun Ryu [1] |
Composer(s) | Minho Jang [1] |
Engine | Gamebryo [2] |
Platform(s) | Microsoft Windows |
Release |
|
Genre(s) | MMORPG, tactical RPG |
Mode(s) | Multiplayer |
Atlantica Online is a free-to-play (F2P) 3D tactical massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) developed by NDOORS Corporation. The game is currently published by Valofe. The game's primary setting is a fantasy-themed alternate history Earth composed of a diverse blend of historical, cultural, allegorical, and mythological elements. The game world is primarily modeled after real-world geography with accessible locations on six of the seven continents as well as the mythical floating continent of Atlantis from which the game's name is derived.
Atlantica Online is a turn-based tactical MMORPG in which the player primarily assumes the role of a descendant of the Atlantean people. The primary goal of the game is to search for your ancestral home to save the world from the effects of Oriharukon, a substance created by the ancient Atlanteans. The player's journey spans the globe and transcends time in search of clues that will lead to the lost civilization. The player battles men, monsters, and machines that have been corrupted by the Oriharukon's Influence. [16]
The game design puts a strong emphasis on membership in guilds, which are permitted to own and customize towns like a business, profiting from the transactions that take place within their town. Up to ten guilds can unite under a single banner to form a Nation and go to war with other nations. Guilds and nations offer a variety of benefits to their members including passive boosts, guild-oriented dungeons, and ‘Guild Crafting’ where every member of a guild works together to complete a single craft. Players can also own their own houses.
In addition to the main quest line, the game features a variety of supplementary side quests rich with history and lore, a complex skill system, an in-depth crafting system, and a player housing system. As players journey through the world of Atlantica Online, their characters and mercenaries grow and develop, gaining access to new, more powerful skills and equipment along the way. As the level cap has advanced, the developers have implemented a set of milestones in the leveling structure with associated level-specific quest lines that enable players access to powerful class-specific skills known as “talents” upon completion.[ citation needed ] Players can recruit up to eight mercenaries to join them in their travels, and each can increase in experience level. There are relatively few equipment options available to players apart from a few class-specific armor sets and limited-time ‘legendary items’. Players can combine armor effects through an "enchantment" process.
The game's battle system is turn-based. [17] When a player character and an enemy character come into contact with each other on the game map, both parties are transported into an instance where the battle takes place. During battle other players' groups and other monster groups may join in to a maximum of three groups on each side. In battle, the characters of each party are positioned on a 3x3 grid. Using attacks and abilities, the goal is to beat the opponent. The rewards include experience points and loot like the game's virtual currency, various materials, pieces of equipment etc. Player versus player combat operates through this system. There are two leagues players can join, as well as daily, weekly, and monthly fights and championships.
The Tactical battle system (TBS) is a separate, additional combat system that differs in many respects from the original system. Players and their adversaries are placed in a landscape where moving around characters freely is possible. New decision impacts like the possibility to take cover, different height levels and the movement speed of specific characters are added while certain mechanics of the original combat system are removed. [18] Players complete story-based and objective-driven missions in the tactical battle system.
A dungeon in Atlantica Online is an instance region that can be opened with a special key and allows up to three players to clean the dungeon of enemies for a final reward in addition to the normal loot. Raid dungeons were added in 2012.
The world of Atlantica Online features real world locations mixed with mythological and fantasy elements. Countries like Germany and China are represented, with cities like Munich, Moscow, and Sapporo as visitable hubs that offer services like banks, hospitals, the marketplace where players can trade goods with each other and other facilities. Though the locations on the map feature climates similar to their real world counterparts, the architecture is often a generic recreation of well known structure types, such as the cities in Eastern Europe and Japan.
The locations are based on real world locations, but are often geographically out of place and altered for effect. Most of the civilizations represented are anachronistic: Rome is set in the Holy Roman Empire, while Great Britain is independent, the Ottoman Empire reigns in Turkey, Southeast Asia resembles ancient Indian kingdoms before Western colonization and Islamic influence, and North America is caught up in the Industrial Revolution.
The North American English version, available worldwide, was first distributed by the USA subsidiary company NDOORS Interactive, Inc. [19] A closed beta version was made available to FilePlanet subscribers in July 2008. [20] The first phase of the open beta ended on July 28; the start of the second phase began on August 7. [21] Atlantica Online ended its beta period and began its official run on October 30. [22] NDOORS also launched Atlantica Online Germany, for European players, on October 21. The closed Beta started on September 1 and ended after a month. The Chinese company The9 obtained exclusive rights for distributing and operating Atlantica Online in China. [23] Russian localized version open beta test started on May 12, 2010, supported by Innova Systems company.
Atlantica's publisher and developer, Valofe, regularly releases new content updates. Non-Korean servers generally receive the updates after the Korean servers. Updates include, for instance, new dungeons, quests, NPCs, skills, mercenaries, outfits, equipment, mounts, and community features. Updates also balance the game's elements. Implemented in August 2010, the Troy Story Arc is a series of 'missions' following the format of the Tactical Battle System (TBS) that was introduced in the same patch. In each mission one or more players take part in a fantasy version of the Trojan War. The rewards include generous amounts of experience points and valuable chests containing loot. [18] In April 2013, the first part of the major content update 'Rise of Atlantis' was released, followed by the second part in May and the third in June. A new area, the Mythical region of Atlantis, was added, which is divided by two, West and Eastern Atlantis. This update was the most extensive to that date, introducing a new continent to explore (mythical Atlantis), new mercenary classes, new equipment, content and several changes to other features of the game. [24] [25] Implemented in April 2014, (Europe) the Mayan Hero Arc is the start of the new "Heroes" class line following the format of the Tactical Battle System (TBS) that was introduced previously in some raids and other more classic Content. In each mission one or more players take part in a fantasy version of the ancient mythology. The rewards can be rewarding if the highest level of content is done. Other features to the game, such as Whip using Mercenary's and a Corps Feature were added to the Korean servers during 2014 and 2015. [26]
In December 2008, the North American continent was added, which features New York City as a new explorable city and the United States and Mexico as explorable countries. These contain a few dungeons, but greatly expand the map in Atlantica. Developers have also mentioned the possibility of adding the continents of the Southern Hemisphere, excluding Antarctica.
Publication | Score |
---|---|
GameSpot | 8.6/10 [27] |
Giant Bomb | 4/5 [28] |
IGN | 8.5/10 [29] |
Publication | Award |
---|---|
Ten Ton Hammer | Best Free To Play Game of 2008 [30] |
2008 Korea Game Awards | Best Game [31] |
GameOgre's 2008 Online Game Awards | Most Innovative Online Game [32] |
OnRPG Member's Choice Awards 2008 | Top Free MMO of 2008 [33] Best Innovation in an MMO of 2008 [33] Best Gameplay in an MMO of 2008 [33] |
ChinaJoy 2008 Golden Plume Awards | Best Foreign Online Game [34] |
Reception of Atlantica Online has been largely positive. The game received a number of awards upon release in 2008. [31] Atlantica Online was selected as an official game for the Korean Game and Game World Championship (GNGWC) in 2008 and 2009 [35] and won the prestigious Golden Plume Award for Best Foreign Online Game at the 2008 China Digital Entertainment Expo and Conference (ChinaJoy). [34]
The game is acclaimed for its innovative turn-based battle system and its integration with community features. Danny Gourley of Ten Ton Hammer praised its gameplay, stating that "it requires gamers to think a little instead of just mashing buttons". [36]
Keith Baker is an American game designer and fantasy novel author. In addition to working with Wizards of the Coast on the creation of Eberron, he has also contributed material for Goodman Games, Paizo Publishing and Green Ronin Publishing. In 2014, Baker and Jennifer Ellis co-founded the indie tabletop game company Twogether Studios.
Tactical role-playing games, also known as strategy role-playing games and in Japan as simulation RPGs, are a video game genre that combines core elements of role-playing video games with those of tactical strategy video games. The formats of tactical RPGs are much like traditional tabletop role-playing games and strategy games in appearance, pacing, and rule structure. Likewise, early tabletop role-playing games are descended from skirmish wargames such as Chainmail, which were primarily concerned with combat.
Age of Conan: Unchained is a fantasy-themed massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) developed by Funcom and published by Eidos Interactive for Microsoft Windows in 2008. Age of Conan is the first installment in the planned Age of Conan series. Age of Conan takes place within the continent of the Hyborian kingdoms, a year after the events depicted in Robert E. Howard's Conan novel The Hour of the Dragon.
Mabinogi is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game released by Nexon, and developed by devCAT studio. The name of the game is taken from the Welsh word Mabinogi, a Welsh anthology of legend, and the settings for the game are loosely based on Welsh mythology.
The9 Ltd. is a Shanghai-based online game operator which had the exclusive licence to operate and distribute World of Warcraft in China, a licence it secured after successfully aiding Webzen Games with the distribution of Mu Online in China. However, in April 2009, Blizzard said that the licence has been moved to NetEase.com.
Dungeon Fighter Online, known in South Korea as Dungeon & Fighter, is a multiplayer beat 'em up action role-playing game, developed and published for personal computers by Neople, a South Korean subsidiary of Nexon, and originally published by Hangame in 2005. The game was originally released in South Korea as Dungeon & Fighter, then in Japan as Arad Senki, and then published in China by Tencent. A global version of Dungeon Fighter Online was released in May 2015.
Soul of the Ultimate Nation was a fantasy-based massive multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) produced by Webzen, a Korean-based company. It was operated in South Korea by Webzen and in mainland China by The9. The game was launched in Taiwan on April 19, and in China on May 24, 2007 as a paid online service and closed on July 3, 2013.
Nexon Co., Ltd. is a South Korean video game publisher. It publishes titles including MapleStory, Dungeon & Fighter, Sudden Attack, and KartRider. Headquartered in Japan, the company has offices in South Korea, the United States, Taiwan and Thailand.
Guild Wars 2 is a free-to-play, massively multiplayer online role-playing game developed by ArenaNet and published by NCSoft. Set in the fantasy world of Tyria, the core game follows the re-emergence of Destiny's Edge, a disbanded guild dedicated to fighting Elder Dragons, colossal Lovecraftian-esque entities that have seized control of Tyria in the time since the original Guild Wars (2005), a plot line that concludes in the third expansion End of Dragons (2023). The game takes place in a persistent world with a story that progresses in instanced environments.
Concerto Gate is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game developed by Ponsbic and Square Enix. The game was released in Japan in 2007, and a planned North American release was cancelled after a beta release in July 2008.
Counter-Strike Online (CSO) is a tactical first-person shooter video game, targeted towards Asia's gaming market released in 2008. It is based on Counter-Strike and was developed by Nexon with oversight from license-holder Valve. It uses a micropayment model that is managed by a custom version of Steam.
Combat Arms: Reloaded & Combat Arms: Classic is a free-to-play multiplayer first-person shooter game developed by Nexon and published by VALOFE outside of Korea. The game uses the LithTech game engine to produce its graphics. In July 2012, Combat Arms was also released on Steam.
Sugar Rush is a cancelled massively multiplayer online game from Klei Entertainment. It was the first game to be developed in North America to be released by Nexon, before it was announced that it would no longer be published.
Vindictus is a free-to-play massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) created by devCAT, an internal studio of Nexon. The story follows the player character joining a group of mercenaries and going on a series of missions to battle monsters. The gameplay has players exploring dungeons, fighting monsters, and upgrading their characters.
NDOORS Corporation is a Korean gaming corporation and developer of online games and MMORPGs and is a subsidiary of one of the world's largest online gaming companies, Nexon. Its headquarters are located in Seoul, South Korea. NDOORS Corporation first started out as "Intizen co., Ltd" in September 1999, but later changed their name in October 2004 to "Ndoors Corporation." On January 18, 2006, NDOORS Corporation took over Koong Entertainment which meant that NDOORS not only would be able to create PC Games, but PSP2 and PSP console games as well. The current CEO of NDOORS Corporation is Cho, SeongWon. The NDOORS logo can be simplified as "Distinction, Sympathy, and Expansion."
Firefall was a science fiction free-to-play massive multiplayer online open world shooter video game developed and released by Red 5 Studios in 2014. Officially announced in 2010, the game entered closed beta in 2011 and open beta in 2013. It was the first and only game to be developed by Red 5 Studios, combining elements from both the shooter genre and some role-playing aspects from the massive multiplayer online genre. Firefall was shut down in 2017.
Counter-Strike (CS) is a series of multiplayer tactical first-person shooter video games in which teams of terrorists battle to perpetrate an act of terror while counter-terrorists try to prevent it. The series began on Windows in 1999 with the release of the first game, Counter-Strike. It was initially released as a modification ("mod") for Half-Life that was designed by Minh "Gooseman" Le and Jess "Cliffe" Cliffe before the rights to the mod's intellectual property were acquired by Valve, the developers of Half-Life, who then turned Counter-Strike into a retail product released in 2000.
Grand Kingdom is a tactical role-playing video game developed by Monochrome Corporation for the PlayStation 4 and PlayStation Vita. It was published by Spike Chunsoft in Japan in 2015, and NIS America in the West in 2016. Following a mercenary group in the employ of different nations formed in the wake of a collapsed empire, the player engages in turn-based combat while navigating paths on maps similar to a board game. Online competitive asynchronous multiplayer where chosen teams of characters fight for a chosen nation was originally featured, but this ended as servers were shut down by 2019 in the West and 2022 in Japan.
Fantasy War Tactics is a free-to-play mobile strategic role-playing game with in-app purchase, developed by Nexon GT and published by Nexon. The game ran its global beta stage on April 30, 2015 and was globally released on November 5, 2015 for both iOS and Android platforms, available in 154 countries.
Dungeon & Fighter, sometimes abbreviated to DNF, is a series of video games created by Neople, a subsidiary of Nexon. While early games were only developed and published by Neople, Nexon began to publish other entries in the series as well as outsource the development to other companies.