Tera, the [MMORPG] massive multiplayer online role playing game from Enmasse Entertainment and Blue Hole Studios released May 1st in 2012 recently updated their previously Pay-2-Play online RPG to a Free-2-Play platform with full access to all users, current, past and future, with the option to [A] Purchase the game and receive “FOUNDER” status whom receive several DLC Content Packs as well as other perks. [B] A paid subscription to the game which entitles the user to “ELITE” status which includes several perks, boosts and DLC Content Packages. Lastly the Free-2-Play option, free to download and free to play with, yep you guessed it, an unfair and sometimes ridiculously implemented disadvantaged compared to the previous user types.
An online store was also recently included in all versions of the game. Normally I would frown on this as with most MMO de3velopers, an online store or more commonly referred to as an “Item Mall” usually leads to the Pay-2-Win approach in most F2P MMOs. Thankfully in this new client, the item mall is completely optional and mostly cosmetic in use. On a more promising note, the battle system the original game introduced which promised a never before seen fast paced action combat system which adopted a game controller inspired control scheme is still intact and improved upon. The combat is more fluid and keyboard and mouse controls are a lot less sluggish this time around. I was impressed from the first battle I engaged and became immersed in. However, everything else was unfortunately a large disappointment. Many things could still be improved and it sometimes feels like an unfinished product. With that being said let’s begin with the persistent game world and the main story line.
The story of Tera Rising as with the original is pretty straight forward. By that I mean boring and irrelevant. Two titans Arun and Shara, for absolutely no explanation what so ever, fell asleep and dreamed of the 7 races that inhabit their creation [The World].
They all have pretty much the same enemy and the same goal which is never really explained enough to be interested. Basically The races are mortal but far more numerous than the immortals whom were wiped out by surprise, surprise the mortal races.
Now this is where I lost interest in the plot, a new enemy has appeared called Argons [basically metallic demons from the underworld] who intend to wake the sleeping titans in an attempt to destroy the world. Most of the NPCs [Non Player Characters] hardly ever have anything to say that hints at any kind of backstory or plot so don’t expect you will know what is going on most of the time and honestly you won’t be interested enough to care. The quests are un-inventive and linear, not to mention pointless, mundane and generally do not motivate the player to even continue reading the quest descriptions due to the fact that you are basically doing the same quest repeatedly to at least level 15-20 at the end of which the game will finally begin to progress. Just be prepared for mind numbing gameplay on the long, boring ride through the initial tutorial/introduction period. Fortunately the tutorial phase can be skipped if you want to jump straight into the action.
Now that we have gotten Tera’s plot covered, lets talk about the famous combat system. You have several class types to choose from, all with their own unique levels of difficulty and special abilities unique to that particular class.
You may want to try each one out for a test run until you find the one you feel most comfortable playing. This is where Tera Rising shines. There are multiple strategies to incorporate in combat no matter which class you play. The class selection screen will display the solo difficulty above the class description in the form of stars and based on the 1-10 system, with 1 being simple and solo survivability being very high to 10 being the most difficult. I would suggest starting with the least difficult and working my way up until your skill level feels well-adjusted to your preferred play style. Let’s take a look at just some of the features of the spectacular battle system.
As I stated earlier instead of using the mouse to initiate basic functions like running, activating skills, auto attacking, point and click etc. that you would find in most MMOs, Tera does a few things differently. First of all you have two control options. The first is using a controller, [Xbox 360, PS3, USB PC Controllers all function properly in Tera] this method is geared towards novice players or players who mostly play console games. There is little latency and next to non-existent lag on a mid-level machine. You may want to calibrate your controller before using it and make sure the proper drivers are installed so that Tera can detect your controller and set the controls accordingly. The downside to using a controller is due to there not being a lock-on feature it is sometimes difficult to stay in striking distance of a few of the classes/races whose main attribute is based on attack speed. I would suggest when using a controller to bring up your options panel and increase the camera speed to suit your skill level. Another problem I noticed when using a controller is the point and click options and player discussion in the chat portion forces you to have to stop put the controller down, hit the alt key and use the mouse and keyboard to execute these selections. It is not a huge problem for players who don’t mind alternating. However if you were expecting to control the entire UI [User Interface] with your controller you will be very disappointed.
Now let’s take a look at the mouse and keyboard control option. This option is preferred for intermediate players who are familiar with the control scheme and would rather have full control over the game without being forced to stop to perform very basic actions. I personally found this option better suited my play style then the controller but feel free to try both to see which one works the best for you. With this option you still do not have any kind of lock-on on your enemies but you are provided with a cursor as a guide. The cursors is placed a small amount to the right to allow freedom of movement as well as a guide on where your opponent is located for easier targeting. As I stated try both of these control schemes to which one is right for you. I will spare you the details but as a side note I would like to mention the skills aspect of the game.
I prefer not to go in depth about the different abilities you obtain throughout your adventures. The base skills are ready to execute right out of the box. Some of them can be purchased and others you will have to earn on your own. In the earlier stages it is a good idea not to buy gear every time you level and as a rule of thumb until you hit level 15 the abilities you receive aren’t going to warrant any kind of high risk, high reward type of gameplay. Now let’s talk about crafting.
To begin with I think it is noteworthy to stress the fact that the most powerful items in the game are the ones you craft yourself at the creation workshop. It is pretty straight forward and decently fool proof. However the downside is you will be spending a lot of your gold paying for designs and materials in order to progress your crafting in any way what so ever. If you are making sure to collect materials on a routine then you should have no problems leveling up your preferred crafting skill as far as the standard materials go. There is a design merchant and a materials merchant whom usually have whatever you may need when completing crafting quests which are found on billboards in every major city and greatly speed up the leveling process of the desired skill. However outside of reagents and materials which can be gathered rather easily there are items you will need to buy with your gold in order to complete the creation of the item and complete that particular quest. The good news is crafting components are plentiful on the servers at the moment and stack in no time at all. You have 6 different types of items you can craft in Tera Rising.
Another thing to keep in mind is Runes. Runes can only be obtained through loot drops. They are very rare but also very beneficial to your equipment. Runes are the core that holds all the stats, attributes and gear properties together to create more powerful equipment. The really rare and super powerful runes called “Greater Runes” only drop from Mini/Area Boss Monsters.
Lastly remember to pay attention to the Crystal slots an item contains. Crystals are slots in your weapons and armor etc. that you can insert into the particular item according to how many slots it contains. Crystals give additional bonus stats, attributes and abilities to the gear you have equipped. Just pay attention to how many slots it contains so you don’t buy unnecessary Crystals just to find out you don’t have another slot to put them in.
Another thing to keep in mind is Runes. Runes can only be obtained through loot drops. They are very rare but also very beneficial to your equipment. Runes are the core that holds all the stats, attributes and gear properties together to create more powerful equipment. The really rare and super powerful runes called “Greater Runes” only drop from Mini/Area Boss Monsters.
Lastly remember to pay attention to the Crystal slots an item contains. Crystals are slots in your weapons and armor etc. that you can insert into the particular item according to how many slots it contains. Crystals give additional bonus stats, attributes and abilities to the gear you have equipped. Just pay attention to how many slots it contains so you don’t buy unnecessary Crystals just to find out you don’t have another slot to put them in.
Weapon Properties •Attack Modifier : How much base damage you do •Impact Modifier: The chances that you will knock your opponent to the ground •Additional MP: How much extra MP the weapon gives you
Armor Properties •Defense Modifier: How much damage you take or how much damage is reduced •Balance Modifier: The measure of how likely you are to get knocked down •Additional MP: How much MP is increased by your armor
Necklaces & Rings [Linked to weapons] •Attack Modifier : How much base damage you do •Impact Modifier: The chances that you will knock your opponent to the ground •Additional MP: How much extra MP the weapon gives you
Earrings [Linked to armor] •Defense Modifier: How much damage you take or how much damage is reduced •Balance Modifier: The measure of how likely you are to get knocked down •Additional HP: How much HP is increased by your armor
Gear Score & Item Level Reminder
As a final reminder just in case this is your first time playing an MMO, and this is true for all of them not just Tera Rising. An “Instance Matching” feature is implemented into the game to match other players into equally leveled groups for completing dungeons. This aspect of any MMO you play is most commonly based on a system created by game communities around the globe called “Gear Score”. This is where the word “Item Level” comes into play. The item level for all of your gear that you have equipped generates your gear score. It doesn’t really mean anything for the average player, however some of the more advanced, hardcore gamers require a specific minimum gear score in order to group with them for dungeons. The reason for this is because it lets them know not only how experienced you are at a particular instance/dungeon but it also helps them decide if you are suited to complete it and cooperate in a group successfully.
Tera Rising is the most graphically impressive game of this type I have seen in quite some time. The colors are vibrant with little chopping or collisions. I hardly ever witness the slightest lag induced rip or tear even when cranked up to high-resolution and mid to high level graphical presets. Occasionally you do see a slight hiccup here and there but usually it is only bad enough to notice if the area is flooded with other players or you are using on-board video ram. The creatures and characters are highly detailed and look exactly as you would imagine. The armor and weapons are quite unique and glimmer beautifully with bloom turned on. The world is rich with texture and substance and the draw distance is how it should be.Water effects are extremely impressive and really immerse you in the world. The only gripe I have is the level of detail of shadows and how much latency is increased with them turned on in crowded areas or during battles. The animations all look natural and fluid. The game runs at around 55-60 FPS on a mid-high machine at 60 Hz and is steady and smooth during spell casting and skill/ability effects. If I had to pick the one thing I like most in this game it would more than likely be based on its performance in such a high end graphics preset. Even at low resolutions nothing is jagged or blurry. I would love to see more from the art developers who performed such a wonderful job and hope we will see future projects from them in the future as far as visuals are concerned.
The graphics are great but what about the audio aspect of Tera Rising? Unfortunately the voice acting is extremely terrible. The kind of terrible that motivates you to unplug your speakers before they burst into flames. The music is the same old classical song and dance your grandparents listened to. Just like every other MMO on the market. The combat sounds make sense and are tolerable but the mundane and flat expressionless inability to sound sincere in any way what so ever just proves that not only did the story sound cliché to the max but you can actually hear the lack of enthusiasm in every single cut-scene. Some of the Castanic Race NPCs had decent humor to listen to but all together I muted the entire sound scheme and listened to the radio while I played.
Tera Rising isn’t necessarily a bad game as it is an unfinished game. Overall the Pros match the Cons and really do make for a fun game to play casually. The new features they have implemented do improve on the base game that was presented last year and does add a fun factor to the current product. However I would not recommend spending any money on Tera via a subscription or game purchase unless you want the titles and DLC. It simply isn’t polished enough to drop any cash on either of the two options. The Item Mall is filled with a lot of useless items that do nothing to improve your experience. It is filled with cosmetic items that do not warrant a purchase unless you care more about what your character is wearing or what his weapon looks like than the quality of the adventure. Game money is easily attained in Tera due to a mid-level face value of most items and the fact that DLC and Item Mall items are tradable. I would recommend sticking to the Free 2 Play client, at least until the game is more complete and the major problems have been addressed.
BTRs
