Today at 5:30 PM, the latest version of the MMORPG Shroud of the Avatar, Pre-Alpha 17, will start.
As the name suggests, this is still a very early version that hasn’t even reached alpha status yet. Accordingly, not all features are included, and one should not expect a stable product in terms of balancing and bugs. In terms of story, for example, there is practically nothing included, apart from a few smaller quests to test the quest system.
Pre-Alpha 17 mainly focuses on optimization, as Shroud of the Avatar recently transitioned from the Unity 4 to the Unity 5 engine. Many elements need to be adjusted. Additionally, Unity 5 allows for some new features that the developers want to bring into the game. These include Speedtree trees and new shaders to improve the graphics. As previously reported, Release 17 is the first to integrate player towns. PaxLair is the first to do so, with more to follow over time. Additionally, the crafting system has been revised, where events now appear in the midst of crafting, making things more exciting. New monsters, as well as street signs and many other graphic elements like fences or visually revamped instances, are also part of the innovations. Furthermore, a new camera system on the world map is being tested, and the feedback from players is eagerly awaited. Improved loading times and many other small details are also included.
Andreas says: Shroud of the Avatar is taking more concrete forms. Although the MMORPG is not yet even in alpha phase, it is already quite playable. With each release, further progress is made. Even though the game contains many elements that are not typical for an MMO – such as the different game modes and the division into a world map and scenes/instances – it plays fresh and differently. The fact that the community can already actively participate in such an early development phase and visibly change the game through feedback is also noticeable with almost every release. I certainly enjoy being part of every release.
For those interested: We have already presented Shroud of the Avatar in detail.
