Throne and Liberty received its first gameplay trailer in 2022 after years. It made a very positive impression there. But after the first beta tests, it looks quite different. Now a trailer for the Summer Game Fest has been released, which is currently receiving strong criticism in the comments on the Xbox channel.
What does the trailer show? In just under 90 seconds, various areas, gameplay content, and combat scenes are shown, with the trailer constantly switching between cinematics and actual gameplay.
The trailer was published, among other places, on the Xbox channel on YouTube, where there were mixed reactions. Some found that Throne and Liberty looks action-packed and beautiful. But that’s exactly a problem, others say. They believe the trailer glosses over the current situation.
You can watch the trailer here:
Criticism of combat system and graphics
What is being criticized? The trailers for Throne and Liberty stage large PvP battles and repeatedly show situations with the cinematic elements where enemies are thrown back by powerful attacks. But you don’t see that in the game itself.
In the game, it feels like a very rigid tab-targeting, with long animations and very little hit feedback. Often you can simply walk out of attacks or get stunned and just have to wait it out. No comparison to the dynamics of games like Guild Wars 2 or Black Desert Online.
Much of it graphically and gameplay-wise resembles a Lineage 3, which could have easily appeared in the late 2000s during the times of LOTRO and Warhammer Online.
A good comparison video to the trailer above is the GvG gameplay from the YouTuber Logen. Noteworthy here is the scene at minute 2:32, where the YouTuber is stunned, but the opponent is just one millimeter too far away, and the entire combo goes nowhere.
Additionally, it is criticized that it is a tab-target game with only 6 abilities and 9 different weapons. That’s overall far too little. The predecessor Lineage 2 relied on over 30 specializations, each with dozens of skills.
Other tab-target games like WoW or FFXIV offer significantly greater variety.
You should soon be able to form your own opinion about the game. A technical test was announced during the Summer Game Fest, for which you can now register (via Throne and Liberty).
“Auto-Run, Auto-Combat, Auto-Loot – Welcome to the Bot World”
What are typical comments under the trailer? There is a flood of criticism under the trailer. The user Marcus Lacey writes, “It is the best AFK game that will be released for consoles.” He refers to mechanics like auto-run and auto-combat. Automatic fighting continues even 8 hours after logout due to a premium item.
Additionally, it is mentioned under the video:
- “It is a shame that you have to stand still in one place to fight.”
- “Dead on arrival. It is a typical Korean MMORPG with autoplay-run and auto-combat.”
- “It is part of the Lineage series, so it will not be successful in the West, but huge in East Asia.”
These comments are devastating, especially considering that NCSoft promised a large game for PC and consoles with Throne and Liberty, which was also supposed to be successful in the West.
Are there also positive voices? Yes, the transformations into animals are praised. In the trailer, you can see two scenes: At second 48, the character transforms into an eagle while falling, and at minute 1:24, the character first uses a grappling hook, then also transforms in mid-air.
Throne and Liberty was supposed to be released in the first half of 2023, but it has been postponed to October. More about this here: The new MMORPG Throne and Liberty officially postpones the release but has good news as well.
