Fractured (PC), a sandbox MMORPG in development, is hosting a stress test that can also be participated in by players who have not invested any money so far. But for whom is the test worthwhile and what does the new online role-playing game offer?
What kind of test is this? On May 26th at 2:00 PM our time, Fractured will launch a test in which initially only those can participate who have supported the MMORPG with money beforehand.
Starting Thursday, May 28th, also at 2:00 PM, all users who have registered on the official website will then be allowed to play.
The stress test runs until Monday, June 1st, at 10:00 AM.
What can be experienced in this test? Fractured is an action MMORPG in iso perspective, but in an early stage. Currently, it is in Alpha 2.
During the test, you will still have access to many contents, including:
- A starting area where you will become familiar with the crafting system through tutorial quests.
- An open world with monsters and other players.
- The knowledge system, which is meant to replace the leveling process.
- Various social features such as groups and guilds.
Completely new for this test is the “Militias” system, where you can join one of three factions, but are not required to. If you join a faction, you are automatically hostile to the others. However, the factions are tied to the character and can be switched. PvP is not possible in starting areas and cities.
What you can expect in Fractured is shown in the trailer from 2019, which has presented the contents of Alpha 2 in detail:
An old sandbox MMORPG, but with modern technology
For whom is the game interesting? Fractured is oriented towards the sandbox classic Ultima Online and gives players a lot of freedom. Anyone looking for a classic theme park game with quests and stories like WoW or Final Fantasy XIV is in the wrong place.
Instead, Fractured focuses on:
- Collecting resources to craft items.
- A completely player-dependent economy.
- Building your own houses and even entire kingdoms.
- Getting to know plants, monsters, and the environments of the game through the knowledge system.
However, Fractured relies on modern technology to achieve these “old” goals. With the help of SpatialOS, the game world is supposed to become huge. This is further divided into three “sub-worlds”, which should appeal to both PvP haters and fans alike.
How does PvP work in Fractured? With the choice of your race, you determine how much PvP you want to experience in Fractured:
- If you play a human, then PvP is heavily restricted and it is subject to the rules of a justice system.
- If you play the beastmen, there is no PvP in their world.
- With the demons, everything revolves around PvP and territorial battles.
Under special conditions, you should have the option to switch worlds. However, you are fundamentally bound to your race and the corresponding playstyle.
How do you learn new skills? In Fractured, there are no levels you can level up. Instead, you determine your attributes at character creation and thus your approximate playstyle.
Unlocking skills takes place through a talent tree. By playing, you discover (randomly) the skill and from that point on you must complete specific tasks to master it.
Promising development, but release not before 2021
How is the development of Fractured going? In June 2018, the developers from Dynamight Studios launched a Kickstarter campaign and aimed to raise 100,000 euros through it.
In the end, it became 111,662 euros and some further goals were achieved, especially in the number of different supporters.
Already in December 2018, a first pre-alpha with about 150 players began, which was under NDA. In April 2019, the game officially started in alpha.
When will Fractured be released? Currently, there is no concrete statement about when Fractured is supposed to be released. In June, Alpha 2 Test 3 is supposed to take place, which will then bring the talent trees and player cities (via Fractured). This will make the game take the next big step.
A beta will definitely follow the test. This makes a release before 2021 more than unlikely.
But the developers should take their time. Because Fractured has the chance to achieve what Legends of Aria and other games have failed to do: to become an old-school sandbox MMORPG that keeps players engaged in the long term.
