In December, the MMORPG Astellia launched in Korea. So far, it is doing very well for the game there. But can it also achieve this feat in the West?
The MMORPG Astellia is set to release this year in the West and even in German. But how does the game actually perform in its home country, Korea?
How well is Astellia doing in Korea?
Astellia is actively played: The website Gamemeca evaluates the use of online games in internet cafés. These are used more in Korea than in our region. In their list for the past seven days, Astellia ranked 37th, just behind Monster Hunter World and Tera.
Also, Multiclick evaluates the usage of PC games. On their list, Astellia even placed 33rd for yesterday, ahead of Tera, ARK, or World of Tanks.
What distinguishes Astellia from other MMORPGs? The special feature of Astellia is the Astells, which give the game its name. These are small, summoned creatures that each player can call upon.
Players can use three Astells simultaneously, regardless of class. These can provide offensive, defensive, or crowd control enhancements.
More than 30 of these Astells are available for selection. This is intended to give the game more depth and tactics overall.
Asian MMORPGs struggle in the West
Many MMORPGs are developed in Korea, which are then hopeful to be transferred to the Western world. This often goes wrong, as we last experienced with Bless. However, there are also many positive examples.
Black Desert is making headway: For Pearl Abyss and Black Desert, things are going well in the West. The game has received numerous updates in 2018, including new classes and areas.
There were also overhauls of the main campaign and many game systems that were improved throughout the year.
The MMORPG is so successful that an Xbox version has now been released.
Other positive examples: Other games like Aion, Blade&Soul with a new update, or Tera are still doing well. Even Final Fantasy Online comes from Japan and has shown strong performance since it was completely overhauled many years ago.
In our list of the top MMORPGs of 2019, three of the games mentioned here are included. This clearly shows that games from Asia also have opportunities with us.
The MMORPG market is hungry: Fans of hardly any other genre are waiting as eagerly for new games as MMORPG fans. Recently, despite new games, most discussions still revolve around World of Warcraft, Elder Scrolls Online, or Guild Wars 2.
An MMORPG, no matter where it comes from, could fill the void in some players’ hearts, as long as it is well implemented.
What are Astellia’s chances with us?
No Pay2Win: They have already assured Western players that they are adopting a Buy2Play model and want to make items that might fall under Pay2Win obtainable through gameplay.
Modern combat system: Also, the combat system seems to be modern. It avoids long animations and even has an active dodge roll like in Guild Wars 2.
Time will tell: Whether the MMORPG can become successful in the West must be proven by Astellia in the coming months. A good foundation is present, the game has smaller innovations, and players are eagerly waiting for a new MMORPG.
