The new Mobile MMORPG Moonlight Sculptor is out for iOS and Android, and MeinMMO author Jürgen Horn has taken a closer look at this adorable game. Read here how he fared in the first hours of gameplay and why the autoplay feature delights him.
What is Moonlight Sculptor? This new mobile game from South Korea fully embraces cute anime graphics and complex gameplay that relies heavily on autoplay while still providing depth in character development.
Since I still find this type of game interesting, I took a closer look at Moonlight Sculptor, grinded through the early levels, and explored the basic gameplay features.
An MMORPG in an MMORPG
What is the background of Moonlight Sculptor? The game surprises with an unusual backstory. Moonlight Sculptor is based on a South Korean youth novel series where players dive into a virtual reality MMORPG and experience adventures there.
Therefore, I actually start the game as a young gamer eagerly anticipating the launch of the new MMORPG “Royale Road” in his living room while arguing with his sister about who gets to play all day while the parents are away on a trip.
When it finally starts, my virtual gamer avatar immediately crawls into a kind of virtual reality capsule and soon finds himself in the MMORPG Royale Road.
So I play as an MMORPG player playing another MMORPG. Cool!
This is how Moonlight Sculptor plays
How were the first steps? Before it starts, I quickly create a character. You can choose from one of 6 classes or defer the decision for now, which would later unlock a secret additional class. But for starters, I’ll stick with Warrior.
There isn’t a big editor menu; I can choose my gender, hairstyle, hair color, skin color, eye color, and a few facial features— that’s it.
What quickly stands out, though, is that the game is incredibly cute. The graphic style is intentionally kept super cute, and the whole world fits this theme. My avatar and all other characters in the world are basically just giant heads with playful faces, attached to tiny bodies.
It gets started quickly: I hate MMORPGs that keep you in the tutorial forever and have to explain every tiny feature. Moonlight Sculptor, however, handles this differently.
After a mini-tutorial in the practice area, I’m out into the world to beat various creatures. I work my way up from rabbits and hedgehogs to foxes and finally even wolves, who fall in droves.
Meanwhile, the game explains to me what to keep in mind and how to improve my stats or upgrade equipment. Everything runs pleasantly smooth, thanks to the well-designed autoplay feature.
Autoplay fits perfectly here
This is why autoplay is so much fun: Like pretty much every mobile MMORPG from Asia, Moonlight Sculptor also has an autoplay feature. The game runs great in autopilot, and the character automatically attacks enemies unless you set something else or intervene.
This may sound terrible for ambitious gamers, but especially for mobile games, this feature is practical. Since the generic enemies like foxes and other creatures don’t really require direct intervention from me as a player, it would actually annoy me if I had to click to death every furry creature manually.
Therefore, I prefer watching my avatar diligently defeat the beasts and loot them right away. Only occasionally do I use one of my skills to take down a fox particularly effectively or defend against a horde of enemies. Because skills are still manually used in my settings, which increases the tactical depth of the game.
However, during boss fights and special challenges, as well as in PvP, you still need to be alert and actively engage to win. Only the typical grind gameplay runs much better with autoplay.
It’s the same gameplay already known from Lineage 2 Revolution, which makes the player more of a hero manager.
Cozy yet challenging
Moonlight Sculptor offers me the optimal mix between autoplay and personal input. Additionally, the game pace is cozy and not too hectic. Everything happens at a rather manageable speed, which makes it optimal for me.
Last Sunday, I casually played a bit on my phone while sitting in the drive-in at the local corona testing station. When the staff member took the test, I let the game run alone for a moment and was able to continue right after.
Later, I had to step away from playing for a moment to help my wife with our little son. Meanwhile, Moonlight Sculptor continued to play on its own, and when I returned, I could look forward to a few more levels and a lot of loot. Furthermore, the big grind quest was already completed, and the story continued.
Especially for players like me who don’t have much time to play and are often interrupted by real-life matters, games with autoplay are fantastic. Because let’s be honest, does grinding manually really bring so much fun? I also wouldn’t mind if other MMORPGs offered such a feature, not just mobile titles.
Jürgen Horn
Editor at MeinMMO
If you are looking for more interesting mobile MMORPGs, we at MeinMMO can certainly help you out. Because in our extensive top list you will find 9 MMORPGs for Android and iOS that you should check out. Maybe there is a game in there that you don’t know yet and with which you will have a lot of fun. Be sure to take a look!
