Every now and then when I feel that I've managed to 'settle down' a bit in my life, something comes along and disrupts it in such a way that I end up being unable to return to my previous incarnation. Atlantica Online was such a disruption. Don't get me wrong, AO is a fantastic MMO, but it was certainly a different kind of MMO from the sort that I was used to. The real problem is that now, having become somewhat used to its interesting ways, I find myself craving more MMOs like this; unique in creation and unique in delivery. We'll call Atlantica Online a good disruption - and I'm here to tell you why.

First of all, for those of you who are safely ensconced within your World of Warcraft, Vana'diel or Norrath, you might be wondering what Atlantica Online is. While you can read about developer commentary here, here, here and here, I'd like to talk about it in my own words. Developed by the Korean Company, NDOORS Corporation, Atlantica Online is a free to play MMORPG that's set on an alternate Earth. The MMO incorporates a lot of elements of steampunk (a blend of fantasy and steam era technology) and fantasy while blending together characters from all sorts of collective myths (Pirates, Spartans and... Napoleon? Oh my.).

Character creation and development in Atlantica Online is deceptively simple. The basic idea is that players choose a 'main' weapon (of seven weapon choices), and then, along the course of their AO lives, they pick up 8 other mercenaries (of 20 unique mercenary classes) to complete their traveling brigade. This 9-man (or woman) unit is then used to engage in PVP battles (typically 1v1) or go dungeon crawling. PvE encounters can have up to 9 monsters per unit, but sometimes other enemy groups can join and transform the thing into a ridiculous 27v9 situation. To combat this, players can also band together to end up making some really huge 27v27 battles, but typically combat is 9v9.

In terms of combat, Atlantica Online is very proud of its unique turn-based combat system, and it goes like this: one side has up to 30 seconds to complete its turn by left clicking an enemy unit to attack with their currently selected mercenary/main, or pressing specific hotkeys to launch / prepare volleys of delicious magic. While this appears to be very simple at surface level - if a little bit boring (except the Unicorn slaughtering!) - further explanation is warranted to really open your eyes. I'll explain later.

Atlantica Online also boasts a very community based structure, in that a significant portion of advancement relies upon communication and interaction with the player base of AO. The way in which they approach the "massively" portion of MMO is really interesting in this regard, because actual fighting is usually done with three other individuals. Where other MMOs almost always tie in combat (one of the most important aspects of any game) with lots of other players, AO has chosen to connect players together through the economy, guilds and crafting. Allow me to elaborate.

The Atlantica Online economy is completely player driven. While there are NPCs who sell specific crafting items, most items are found by farming monsters and opening little treasure boxes. As well, a significant amount of equipment is crafted by other players, and these crafters dictate how their portion of the economy works. There are a few NPCs who sell items for set prices, but there are no NPCs who purchase things for anything above 10 gold. Basically, if you want to make any money, or have any gear for your mercenaries, you're going to have to participate in AO's fluctuating economy. This leads me to the next part of the economy, and one that I found really interesting: crafting in AO.

Crafting in Atlantica Online, as I've noted before, is what completely drives the economy. Players must 'queue up' a specific craft to complete, and then they have to go out and kill a set amount of monsters to complete the workload necessary to finish the craft. Don't ask me why slaughtering phantoms is necessary towards creating my bullets, but it's definitely a different direction from most other MMOs that require you to step away from combat for the entirety of your crafting session. Do note, however, that AO does offer the ability to 'auto-craft' at later levels, which basically allows you to toddle off while your character slowl y fulfills the 'workload' required to craft the item. What is really neat about crafting, however, is not the fact that the AO team has thrown these two systems together in a vaguely cohesive manner, but it is how crafting advancement in Atlantica Online takes place.

The thing about AO is that there are very few NPC crafters (one) that 'teach' you how to make your stuff. I attempted to look up the residence of the only NPC gun crafter in the world of AO, and discovered that he lived a solid hour (that's a real life hour, mind you) away from my current location. Boggled by this, I wrote out a carefully constructed inquiry (I whined) to my in-game guild, only to have a little message pop on my screen: "____ is about to teach a skill. Do you want it?" As it turns out, crafters in Atlantica Online operate in a symbiotic manner. Essentially, each level of crafting requires a specific amount of "crafting experience" to be fulfilled before you can advance to the next level. In order to advance to the next level, however, you do not simply level up every time you hit the pre-requisite experience; you can only advance to the next level if you pay a fee to trainer who lives halfway across the world from you, or if you are 'taught' a level up from any higher level artisan. For the upper level crafters, the benefit from teaching their newbie brethren comes in the form of additional crafting experience for them, thereby helping them push towards higher crafting levels of their own (which would be granted to them by even higher level artisans). In this way, high level crafters are constantly trying to help lower level crafters, and lower level crafters are advancing by helping anybody who's lower than themselves. This aspect adds a unique dimension to the crafting community of Atlantica Online and it creates a sense of participation to crafters of all levels.

Guilds in Atlantica Online are, like any other MMO, plentiful. The unique thing about Atlantica Online is that when guilds have enough members and support, they can submit bids to take over towns. The bidding in this case utilizes guild points, and these points are accumulated by entering guild dungeons and decimating monsters, or crafting guild items, or even by maintaining a high attendance. Once a guild takes over a town, they gain many economic benefits, as well access to unique dungeons and other bonuses. Towns taken by guilds can band together to form a nation, and can subsequently go to war on other nations. During war is the only time when 3v3 PvP can take place, but war also has its own negative aspects, as players who lose in combat have a chance to drop a piece of their equipment. When we're talking about gear that costs incredible amounts of money, it becomes a difficult choice to go to war and risk losing an item that you spent weeks trying to get.

In many ways, Atlantica Online may seem like a very traditional Korean MMO with turn-based fighting, but there are some very well developed ideas at play here that hint at a deeper game. The combat system in Atlantica Online, while it seems simple in its turn-based antiquity, introduces great synergies that utilize your entire mercenary force. As well, skill development per mercenary is limited, so no two teams are ever the same in execution or strategy, even if they utilize the exact same mercenaries. I really enjoy games that make me think - even when I'm not playing the game - and Atlantica Online is one of those games. Even when I wasn't at the computer toddling around with my team, I would often space out, imagining the various ways in which I could develop killer strategies and coherent matrices. Some gamers may prefer an easier approach to their game, but I would certainly have it no other way.

Another way Atlantica Online is unique in its approach is that it rewards philanthropy and good will, but does not make them mandatory aspects of the game. There are several little 'title' awards that give neat bonuses for players who give 25 gifts to new players, or give cash donations to other crafters. Guilds gain bonuses for taking good care of their villages, high level crafters gain bonuses for helping low level crafters, and the NDOORS Company is planning to implement rewards for players who volunteer their time to mentor newer players. All of this speaks towards a game that's focused upon community involvement rather than self-involvement.

The only real complaints I have for this game are its generally clunky user interface and controls. Despite the game involving a fair amount of interaction, the chat boxes and interface generally make it very difficult to communicate with other people. To date, I don't think I've managed to discover a method of quickly and easily sending whispers / messages to other players. In combat, there are many situations where I'll want to target a specific monster, only to have the game think that I was really attacking something else. At the same time, I'm unsure if this is a glitch that is unique to my own computer, but every now and then the camera will zoom ridiculously close to the monster I'm attacking, and render me unable to continue my combos. There needs to be a simplified monster box on the screen that allows me to quickly and easily click my targets, instead of having to manipulate the camera like a madman. As well, call me picky, but my shoulders don't move when I run . It creeps me out.
 
The final problem that I have found with Atlantica Online - and for me, it's not really a problem - is the lack of human participation that is required for combat. For myself, I think it's fantastic that there is an incredibly low headcount requirement for any monster mashing, but other individuals may find that low player participation means a sterile world. I ingrained myself within every social aspect of this game as soon as I began, so I did not feel like I was completely alone. Your social mileage may vary, I suppose.

Yes, AO generates its revenue via micro transactions, and a significant portion of the game is based around questing for experience, but I can honestly say that Atlantica Online is one of the first MMOs I've played that hasn't tried to 'remix' the World of Warcraft style. When a market is so completely eclipsed by a single juggernaut, it becomes difficult to think outside of the genre box; we ultimately end up believing that the behemoth is the genre. In this case, Atlantica Online goes out of its way to definitively prove that they can create a unique game that falls within the "MMO" category while still providing a highly entertaining and a richly complex game. AO shines as a game that was developed out of a passion for the craft, as opposed to a quick method of tapping the gaming industry. I really hope that others will take this as an example to be just as innovative and daring when they create their own MMOs.

Christopher "Pwyff" Tom
Editor
Allakhazam.com