In Korea, the action MMORPG Asker Online, formerly known as Black Sheep, has just completed its final 3-day testing phase and is approaching release.
Asker belongs to the flavor of action MMORPGs that Koreans enjoy, featuring a “flashy” combat system that provides real action on the screen. It is currently being produced by Neowiz, which has a mega seller with Crossfire. Here is a trailer showing the 12 boss battles from Asker:
In Europe, the flashy “action MMORPG” genre is still somewhat niche. While Tera is already a AAA representative, other games with this design philosophy are only set to arrive in the coming months and years. However, there are already many Asian imports of this kind that haven’t quite captivated the western audience yet, at least not in the MMORPG segment. Asker is often compared to Vindictus, a typical representative of this specific niche..
Whether it can establish itself in the West in the long term is currently uncertain. It will also likely depend on the success of Blade and Soul in the West whether Asker will ever receive a West release and if we will get to play it here. At the moment, only a Chinese version is confirmed outside of Korea.
