Hope for Release 2021: Project TL
What is Project TL? At first (and even at second) glance, it looks similar to Lost Ark. An action MMORPG from an isometric perspective. It is supposed to offer a destructible environment, among other features.
It’s difficult to grasp how Project TL will eventually turn out. The game was initially set to be released in 2016 as “Lineage Eternal”. An exciting feature was that players could not only control a hero but lead a team of 4 heroes and switch between characters using F1 to F4.
Beta testers referred to the game in 2016 as “grindy but fun.” Back then, it was said that Lineage Eternal would take time until Level 40, but then pick up pace.
However, in 2016, NCSoft made significant last-minute changes: There is still little known about the new concept for Project TL. Only reports from “internal tests” by the developers are available, wherein the allegedly “critical in-house testers” particularly praised the siege warfare and the “group battle” feature (via twitter).
As of now, there is still no comprehensive picture of how Project TL will ultimately turn out.
Since when have players been looking forward to Project TL? The game has been in development since 2011. Initially planned as “Lineage Eternal,” it was meant to come for PC and mobile. It was supposed to lead the importantly franchise “Lineage” into a new era after Lineage 1 (1998) and Lineage 2 (2003) had aged.
In 2016, Lineage Eternal was on the verge of a global release. It was supposed to be a hybrid game for PC and mobile. Beta tests were conducted in Asia, with European beta tests planned. However, NCSoft pressed the “reset” button, retracted the game, and started development anew. NCSoft changed the leadership of the development team and the engine, pushing the game back into development.
In 2017, NCSoft had a mega hit with Lineage M. Now they could afford to take even more time with Lineage Eternal: Lineage M brought the franchise into the new era.
The development of Lineage Eternal has been sluggish from the start. The reset has been a bumpy road for Project TL as well. Over the past few years, there were repeated announcements that release would happen “next year” before a 12-month silence ensued.
Will Lineage Eternal really come in 2021? It has the lowest likelihood of the three games for a Western release by 2021. However, it is conceivable that it will start in South Korea in 2021. This has been announced. Whether it will come directly to Germany is unclear.
NCSoft has had a strange public presence for years. Though they announced years ago that all new PC games would also come to consoles and thus invariably to the West, it seems that NCSoft is currently enjoying so much success with mobile games in Asia that they no longer see the West as that important.
The last Western experiments failed with WildStar and Master X Master. Perhaps the enthusiasm has waned a bit. It looked as though Lineage Eternal would be released in the West almost simultaneously with South Korea back in 2016. Whether this will be the case for Project TL in 2021 remains unclear.
What can we expect from Project TL? Project TL has certainly the most question marks among the games we are considering today. If the game comes out in 2021, it will have been in development for 10 years and seems to have gone through a “developer hell.” However, recent reports from the closed beta sound positive.
We can expect a modern action MMORPG in an isometric perspective with a focus on destructible environments, grinding, and huge bosses.
NCSoft has endless money and experience. The question is how high Project TL remains on the company’s priority list.
In any case, the prospects for a strong MMORPG year in 2021 are better than in the 6 years prior. But as we have seen, plans can dissolve into thin air, as shown by the pandemic year 2020.
For 2021, we should hope for Amazon. If they can deliver the roll neck sweaters, Christmas gifts, and large-screen TVs on time, hopefully, they can also deliver the promised new AAA MMORPGs.
