The Asia MMORPG Bless Online is leaving Early Access today and is available for all players as a free-to-play version on Steam. Who should take a look at this MMORPG?
After a five-month Early Access phase on Steam, all players now have the opportunity to try out Bless Online for free.
What can players expect from Bless?
Bless is a classic MMORPG that you can play with both a tab-target and an action combat system. Expect the usual “Kill X of these” or “Bring Y there” quests.
Bless focuses on clearly defined classes: In Bless Online, you can choose from currently 6 different classes. Each class has a more or less defined role within a group. For example, the Paladin is a very good healer, while the Berserker can deal significant damage.
Groups in dungeons usually consist of a healer, a tank, and two damage dealers.
Features of the MMO: To give your character tasks in Bless, there are many different activities you can engage in.
- In Bless Online, you will find numerous dungeons to explore. To simplify your search, there is a party finder tool, although many groups simply ask for players in the chat.
- Bless is a PvP MMO. Once you leave your faction’s safe zone, you can be attacked and killed by enemy players at any time. There is an item in the game that prevents PvP for a limited time.
- In addition to open-world PvP, you can also compete with other players in various PvP modes. The Peninsular War is a battlefield for 30 players. Additionally, there is an arena and guild PvP.
- Bless Online allows you to tame many monsters and add them to your collection as pets or mounts. At launch, there were over 660 different monsters to collect. For the F2P launch, there will be a special flying mount for returning players.
What’s new with the release of Bless? Prior to launch, Bless Online received an update that raised the maximum player level from 45 to 50. Additionally, the endgame has been expanded with a new raid for 10 players.
At launch, you will finally be able to play Bless Online in German. Previously, players had to have basic English skills to play the Asian MMO.
Who should check out Bless Online?
If you played Bless at launch and then stopped, it’s worth taking another look at the MMO. Neowiz has worked on Bless Online over the last 5 months, implemented new content, and improved performance.
A classic AAA MMO: However, players who have not yet had a chance to look at the MMO should take an interest. Bless is especially appealing to players who want to experience a classic MMO again. The game features the Holy Trinity, and you rely on groups for PvP and PvE content.
But don’t expect as action-packed a combat system as games like Tera or Black Desert offer. The combat system in Bless Online is relatively slow.
For those who want to wait: We will soon summarize reactions to the launch.
Update 24.10: Players have already given initial feedback on the release version of the game.
How did Early Access go?
The Early Access launch of Bless at the end of May 2018 was accompanied by several MMO sites. However, over time, player interest in the MMORPG declined.
Bless Online started with more than 34,000 players and settled at around 600 in the last weeks. This was due to various issues.
Reasons for player decline: Though Bless Online’s developers responded quickly to player feedback, they couldn’t fix a dupe exploit, performance issues at launch, and a poor PvP balance quickly enough or at all. However, there was also positive feedback. Particularly the revised combat system and the publisher’s quick response to criticism were well received by players.
What does the future hold for Bless?
This gives players hope: Neowiz has repeatedly asserted in recent weeks that they are putting all available resources into launching Bless Online cleanly on Steam. The publisher has regularly provided the MMO with new content during Early Access, fixed bugs, and resolved issues. Neowiz believes in Bless Online and that players will return to the MMO at launch.
The rating of Bless on Steam has improved in recent days. At the beginning of October, 82% of players rated the MMO negatively. The rating has since improved, and now only 56% of users rate the game negatively.
Players are skeptical: Bless Online has already failed in Russia, South Korea, and Japan. Some players predict that the game will end up with the same fate in the West. They can’t imagine that simply switching to the free-to-play model will help. The core gameplay has barely changed during Early Access after all.
You can download Bless Online for free on Steam starting today at 7 PM.
At Gamescom 2018, Neowiz announced the action MMO Bless Unleashed, which uses assets from Bless Online and is available for Xbox One. Players’ accusations that Bless Online was only released in the West to finance Bless Unleashed were denied by Neowiz.
