When it comes to the most successful MMORPG franchises in video game history, Lineage from NCSoft must not be missed. Now, Lineage 2 is celebrating its 20th anniversary in three different versions of the online role-playing game.
What do I need to know about Lineage 2? The successor to Lineage comes from the MMORPG experts at NCSoft and was released on October 1, 2003, in South Korea and on April 28, 2004, in North America. Later, a version for Europe and various spin-offs followed, such as for mobile devices or as a classic version.
Lineage 2 tells the backstory of Part 1, which spans four sagas. The gameplay framework is heavily focused on PvP sieges, raids, and building your own clan. You can raise houses and mount pets and master more than 30 classes. The MMORPG was developed in Unreal Engine 2 at the time and now operates on a free-to-play model.
The Lineage franchise remains one of the most important franchises for NCSoft. By 2007, the second part was reportedly sold over 18 million times. The mobile port Lineage 2M was at one point the highest-grossing app in the Google Play Store (via Korea Herald).
Lineage is one of the MMORPGs that has been around for over 20 years but is still playable:
How is NCSoft celebrating the anniversary of Lineage 2? The birthday party takes place in three different versions of Lineage 2, each with the release of a special update:
- Lineage 2: Aden gets the update “The Rise of the High Elves” – featuring the namesake high elf classes Spirit and Sacred Templar, new hunting zones, rewards, and more.
- Lineage 2: Live receives the package “Return of the Rogue” – with a complete overhaul of the rogue class, the Valakas raid, a new alliance zone, expansions to the relic system, and more.
- Lineage 2: Classic looks forward to the patch “Mother Tree” – with various in-game events related to the mother tree, a new zone, quality of life improvements, and more.
Additionally, there are special registration rewards if you log into Lineage 2 between April 16 and May 21, 2024 – more details on the official website.
What is the difference between the versions? Aden expands the gaming experience of Lineage 2: Live with new and updated classes, additional options for solo adventures, a fresh pet system, and an optimized leveling experience. According to the developers, Aden is the best way to get into the modern version of Lineage 2.
Throne and Liberty was originally meant to be a new installment for the Lineage franchise:
With Classic, however, it is quite the opposite. Here you can experience the original Lineage 2 and dive into the “nostalgic hardcore leveling grind” of the past. In other words: If your character dies, you lose significant progress.
We congratulate NCSoft on the anniversary and wish them much success for the next 20 years. How about it: Have you played a Lineage installment? What do you associate with the franchise? Tell us in the comments!
More news from the MMORPG genre can be found here: Great announcements, fun parties, lots of drama – what a week for all MMORPG fans
