About seven years after the announcement, Bless Online is finally set to release in Europe and North America in 2018. But does the graphics still impress today? Our author Andreas believes: Maybe the wow-factor is missing, but Bless still looks good.
In 2011, the MMORPG Bless was announced by Neowiz. It was supposed to use Unreal Engine 3 and could make MMO fans’ mouths drop with its first screenshots. The graphics looked stunningly detailed in 2011 – especially those images featuring animals like elephants, which managed to impress players who were eagerly anticipating the title.
A Rocky Road
However, production was plagued by many problems. There were reports that the MMO wouldn’t play well, and the Russian beta version was shut down shortly after launch due to lack of interest.
In 2017, the western publisher Aeria Games announced it would no longer distribute the game. Developer Neowiz then took the reins and reworked Bless in many areas. The start of the early access phase is planned for “as soon as possible” on Steam.
Seven Years Grazing on a Game’s Graphics?
So about seven years have passed since the announcement. During this time, games have made a significant graphical leap. Especially the MMO Black Desert Online shows what is visually possible in an online role-playing game today. Furthermore, the Unreal Engine 3 used in the game has now been replaced by the newer version 4. Thus, fans have criticized the game’s graphics in many ways:
- Bless no longer impresses visually as it did at the beginning.
- Bless looks outdated now.
- Bless uses an outdated engine.
- Bless can no longer compete visually with newer games.
It Still Looks Great Today!
If you look at current videos and screenshots of Bless, then the MMORPG still makes a fantastic impression today. The landscapes appear detailed, and the lighting creates a wonderful atmosphere. The gear of the characters is full of details, and the models look rich in detail and are simply beautiful to behold. However, the criticism from players cannot be completely dismissed.
- Bless is now competing with games that look graphically stunning. The wow-factor that players had at the announcement in 2011 is no longer as present. However, that doesn’t mean Bless looks bad now; it was simply ahead of its time back then, and the game has since been caught up to.
- Bless uses Unreal Engine 3, which can deliver excellent graphics, but Unreal Engine 4 is capable of even more, especially in terms of lighting. Additionally, the “plastic doll” effect that many character models suffer from in titles using Unreal Engine is less pronounced in version 4.
Bless Holds Up Very Well Graphically
Objectively speaking, Bless is still one of the best-looking MMORPGs today. Yes, that may not impress as strongly due to modern games nowadays as it did about seven years ago; nevertheless, there are many examples – especially in the field of MMORPGs – that look significantly worse than Bless and are also just now being released.
Bless simply amazed graphically in 2011, and it is entirely normal for much to have changed in the market over seven years, leading the wow-factor of Bless to diminish somewhat. Nevertheless, it still looks fantastic today!
What do you think?
After four years, Bless Online brings back a classic AAA MMORPG
