by Lynn Kraczek
With over one and a half million accounts, Fallen Sword is well on its way to the top of the browser game phenomenon. It's one of those games that you stumble into and then when you look at the clock again you wonder just where the time went. It's also one of those rare games that really doesn't require you to be on for huge chunks of time, which is a big bonus for those trying to stay out of the proverbial doghouse while at work or with the significant other. The icing on the cake though, is the community that is integral to the game. If you do any research at all, you'll hear endless tales of how responsive the developers are and how hard they work to keep the game fresh and fun. These days, that trait is exceedingly rare, which makes it all the more impressive to me.
At first glance, the browser page is crowded with information and not very friendly to a new player. There are a host of ads from various in-game people and guilds, along with any news updates from the game. Along the left hand side are all the navigational buttons for game play, and frankly, there are a ton of them. My saving grace was noticing a small blurb in a corner catering to the ew player?that directed me to both the Fallen Sword forums and the Wiki. Once I spent a few minutes reading over the recommended resources, I felt much better prepared and even a bit excited. My initial frustration continued briefly once I logged in because I didn't readily see where I was supposed to bend I never did stumble across the tutorial I had read about. All that said, once I did figure out where I was going, it was much, much easier and I was able to relax and enjoy the game for what it was (and promptly forgot all concepts of time). I hacked and slashed away at monsters and even an occasional PC until I ran right out of stamina. I finished a few quests and received some new items to help me on my journey ?until I ran out of stamina.
Stamina. The primary ability that allows you to move and engage in combat. You start out with a pool of 500, and while that works for a while, it quickly depletes and only regenerates at a rate of fifty stamina per hour. For a gamer with a lot of time to play, this is a huge drawback. But, for the gamer that really doesn have an unlimited availability of time, this is actually a great feature. This is insurance to the player that even though he may have only an hour to immerse himself in a virtual world, he won fall behind because of his lack of play time. Most games these days will tout friendliness to both casual and power gamers, but in reality, very few actually end up true to that claim. The only other thing that I had issue with was the fact that you lose quite a bit of XP if you die to a monster. If you happen to die to a mob at the beginning of a new level then it quite possible that you lose that new level as well. This setback can be remedied by using some FSP to give you protection against falling below a set number of experience points. This is something I definitely used, since I have a tendency to rush headlong into combat against things that very possibly hurt me badly.
One of the greatest perks is that the currency in Fallen Sword is a combination of gold and FSP. You can buy equipment at the Auction House with gold or FSP and you can purchase upgrades for your character with FSP. Some of the upgrades are very tantalizing, especially when you start out with only 3 back pack slots but can buy yourself a few more. The protection against XP loss, ability to purchase in game gold, and stamina enhancements are just a couple of the many options you have to make things more convenient for playing. Because these two currencies are used interchangeably and can be traded from person to person, it gives both the player who can afford to spend real life money and the player who can invest in the game often the same opportunities. Player trades are another perk that are simple to execute, which is quite helpful when you are recruiting your friends to play and you need to help them out right away. It was very helpful to me when I received 3 shipments from random high level people that had anticipated a new player needs. I mean, really, who would turn down a welcome basket? Another great thing is that I am able to send items and money to anyone without having to meander around to find a mailbox or a physical Auction House.
When I first zoned into the Misty Mountains there were plenty of enemies to kill even before I found my first quest NPC. I never seemed to be left searching for something to kill, which is very refreshing after playing games where everyone and their brother are hunting for the same mob. The quests were easy to complete and gear was abundant both in drops and quest rewards. This ease of game play made it much easier to relax and just have fun without the worry of new equipment upgrades or other typical game concerns.
Guilds are a whole other dynamic to Fallen Sword. In order to create a guild, you need to be level 25, but you can join one much earlier. Guilds are able to build and upgrade special structures in order to give stat increases to all their members, and I think that is a huge incentive to join up with one of these online communities. Those ability score buffs enabled a player two levels lower than me to one shot me; guilds are a huge bonus feature.
Overall, it a great game for a casual player. There are a lot of qualities that make it fun and enjoyable to dabble in but it probably not the best playground for a hardcore, obsessive gamer. I dislike the reliance on buying FSP to make the game more playable, but at later levels you can buy FSP with in-game gold. I like the simplistic style of combat and the ease of leveling. For a relative newcomer to browser games it pretty easy to pick up the basic points of the game. I think there are plenty of different attributes to Fallen Sword that a lot of gamers can find something that draws them into the world of Erildath.
Pros: The relative simplicity, the community, quick advancement
Cons: The restraints that stamina puts on game play, the chance to lose levels by death
Game Play - 7
Stability - 9
Interface ?7
Community - 9
Reviewer's Tilt ?8
Overall Rating ?8
Download Address:http://www.cheatson9.com/google/224.html
No comments:
Post a Comment