The Free2Play spin-off Ashes of Creation Apocalypse offered you the opportunity to extensively test the MMORPG’s PvP last week. Our author Alexander Leitsch ventured into the game and now reports on his experiences in the Apocalypse.
I was really looking forward to the release of Apocalypse, as it was also my first chance to get my hands on Ashes of Creation. Of course, Apocalypse is not the full MMORPG Ashes of Creation, which I have high hopes for.
But just experiencing the combat system and seeing if the developers can actually create a playable version fueled my anticipation.
Meanwhile, the first game phase is over, and more phases are set to follow in early January. So if you didn’t have a chance to play Apocalypse yourself, this article gives you an insight into the game.
My First Round in Apocalypse
In the first phase, Ashes of Creation Apocalypse only contained one game mode: Battle Royale.
I have been able to avoid most battle royale games so far, even though I was forced to play Fortnite a couple of times. Nevertheless, the game mode did not diminish my anticipation.
The Beginning of a Round: The start of the first match is simple. You enter a game with a button press, land in a queue, and after a few minutes the first round starts, or so I thought.
However, we first landed in a kind of lobby where we could brawl a bit without anyone taking any damage. This lobby was helpful to initially get used to the game, the combat, and movement.
After some time, the apocalypse began, and we were suspended in mid-air after some colorful effects. Riding griffins, I looked for a point on the map where I could land and equip myself.
A Game Without Classes: In Apocalypse, you have five inventory slots for weapons, potions, and armor. The latter can be applied through usage, allowing you to regain the free slot. The style of play is defined by the equipment found.
You can engage in ranged combat and attack other players with bows or crossbows. But you can also use the standard equipped axe, found swords, or hammers to pressure enemies in close combat.
Additionally, you can use staffs and scepters to cast spells against enemies. I only learned all this gradually, as in the first round I quickly found myself in a direct “axe against axe” duel with another player.
I was able to win this, but just before I could collect my loot, another player found me and dealt the finishing blow. In a round of Apocalypse, you only have one life. After that, you can only observe the events from the perspective of the other players.
So the first round was over.
Team Play: Only after a few rounds did I realize that I always have allies. Optionally, I can either sign up with friends for a game or be randomly assigned three teammates.
I cannot harm them and can track them on the map as points. It is best to try to stick together as a group, as that ensures survival for a start.
The End of a Match: In almost all matches, there was a showdown in close quarters. As time goes on, the playing area shrinks since a red circle closes in from the outside.
As soon as you walk through a red wall, you take continuous damage. In one match, the playing field was even completely dissolved. Both players had a small remaining amount of health points at the end. However, one attack ended that round as well.
My Problems with Apocalypse
While the game’s world is really beautiful and varied, I didn’t like many animations in the game from the very beginning. This exacerbated my already existing problems with jumps and combat.
The Combat and Movement System: The cause of my discomfort with the combat system is that attacks consume stamina. And the same stamina that we also use for jumping or dodging.
Simply attacking mindlessly doesn’t work because otherwise, you have to regenerate stamina before you can strike again. This catching your breath quickly becomes a deadly forced pause.
Among the animations, particularly the dodge roll is unusual and not as dynamic as I am used to from Guild Wars 2.
Additionally, you can sprint with your character to flee before a fight. Interestingly, this does not consume any stamina.
The Equipment: Even after several rounds, I still had significant issues with the topic of equipment. Regularly, you find armor and weapons in blue, red, or gold colors.
However, you only learn what these weapons and armor actually do, how much damage they actually cause, or what hidden bonuses they contain once you equip them. It took many matches before I could somewhat confidently swap out equipment.
Additional Content from Apocalypse
The Quest System: To provide a bit of long-term motivation, the developers have come up with a quest system. In it, you will find weekly tasks, such as dealing damage to enemies, defeating opponents, or finding and using specific weapons.
With the help of the Legendary Paths, which can be purchased in the shop, you can also unlock additional weekly quests.
The Shop: Ashes of Creation Apocalypse has a real-money shop with various cosmetic effects. This shop is currently heavily criticized, because the prices are sometimes very high and because it features the aforementioned Legendary Path.
A Problematic Launch
The launch of Apocalypse was originally planned for December 18, but the game really only gained momentum on the weekend after. The developers were hampered by problems with the user database on the new website, as well as server issues.
By the end, however, it was very enjoyable to play Ashes of Creation: Apocalypse.
The connections were stable, and otherwise, we were spared from lags or other major issues. This gives me a positive outlook for the upcoming MMORPG, as they reacted quickly and evidently learned as well.
What is Planned for the Future of Apocalypse?
On January 11, a further test phase of Apocalypse is set to proceed. Initially, only short stress-test weekends are planned. The official release is scheduled for February.
Will there be additional game modes? If Battle Royale as a game mode does not appeal to you, you can look forward to two new additions in the course of 2019:
- On the one hand, a fortress mode is planned, where one faction of players defends it. The other attacks the fortress.
- Additionally, a coop horde mode is planned, where players will face increasingly stronger waves of enemies together. Both of these are set to be available to everyone within Apocalypse.
Especially the fortress mode is interesting to me, because this will be a core feature of Ashes of Creation and its nodes.
